Alabama basketball manhandled by Florida for second loss in a row: Score, highlights
Alabama basketball can’t forget the friends − and foes − it made along the way to the Final Four last spring, and one of the Crimson Tide’s most infamous opponents was Florida.
The Gators, ranked No. 5, scored more than 100 points against Alabama in both games of the series for the 2023-24 season, and they almost did it again in a 99-94 win on Wednesday in Coleman Coliseum.
After taking another ego blow after a loss at the buzzer against Tennessee, No. 8 Alabama (23-7, 12-5 SEC) couldn’t buy a board against Florida (26-4, 13-4), which outrebounded the Crimson Tide 50-35 while going 12-for-16 on layups and 8-for-10 on dunks.
Alex Condon had 27 points and 10 rebounds for the Gators. Walter Clayton Jr. supported the sophomore with 22 points.
Eleven of Florida’s 50 boards came from Rueben Chinyelu, who also led the Gators with two steals that contributed to six turnovers for Alabama, which matched a season low set against South Dakota State.
The Crimson Tide was led by another 30-point performance from Mark Sears, who came second on the roster with one less rebound than Clifford Omoruyi’s team-high seven.
Two perfect trips to the foul line for Clifford Omoruyi gave Alabama some critical points with less than two minutes to play. Still, the Crimson Tide is trailing a little bit too late, and a foul called on Labaron Philon brought UF’s Alex Condon to the free throw line to score two, extending Florida’s lead to 89-82.
The Crimson Tide is getting crushed on the glass. Florida has 13 offensive boards to just seven for Alabama, which is 10-for-24 on layups with 5:55 on the clock. Meanwhile, the Gators, up 79-68, have gone 12-for-15 in the stat category and have converted six of eight dunk attempts.
Big men Grant Nelson and Aiden Sherrell have contributed Alabama’s only two dunks of the night out of four tries for the Crimson Tide as the center Omoruyi has been limited offensively around the rim.
Shots are still falling steadily for Florida, which is 5-for-6 on its last attempts from the floor. UF’s Denzel Aberdeen capped the run with a trey to see the Crimson Tide trail, 61-51, with 9:46 on the clock.
In the second half, Florida is shooting over 52% from the floor and downtown, led by 19 points for Walter Clayton Jr.
Another two minute-long scoring drought for the top scoring offense in the nation was broken by Mark Sears with a 1-for-2 performance at the one-line. Meanwhile, the Gators went on a 7-0 run, highlighted by a second-chance layup by Clayton, which became a 3-point play after a shooting foul on Omoruyi.
At media timeout with 11:36 on the clock, Florida leads 62-57.
Hoping to rejuvenate the Crimson Tide for the last 20 minutes of play, Oats has talked about changing up Alabama’s second-half starters over the last few weeks. However, he stuck to his regulars and it worked out as Chris Youngblood swiped the lead back for Alabama, which only kept it thanks to back-to-back jump shots from Philon.
The starter Omoruyi was subbed out for Sherrell, who came off the bench for a layup, which was answered by a second-chance basket for Grant Nelson to put Alabama up, 51-47, a little over four minutes into the last period.
With 1:33 to halftime, it looked like the tables had turned as Alabama held Florida scoreless for over two minutes. That defensive help set the stage for the All-American Sears to reclaim the Crimson Tide’s lead with his first trey of the night, bringing his first-half point total to 16.
Chris Youngblood answered with a jumper to see Florida trail, 40-36, but Clayton and Alijah Martin netted two shots to send Florida into the locker room on top, 41-40.
Florida has gone on another scoring-streak while its defense, led by three boards from Condon and four total from Rueben Chinyelu, has denied Alabama six of its last seven shot attempts. Scoreless for 2 1/2 minutes with 6:45 to halftime, the Crimson Tide trails 27-23.
Just off of the logo, Aden Holloway released the ball and every fan in Coleman knew the shot was good before it made it halfway to the net. The 3-pointer put Alabama just one point away from tying up the scoreboard, and Florida came up short on its possession.
The last of two missed jumpers for the Gators was rebounded by Holloway, who drove down court to eventually find Mouhamed Dioubate for the assist to Sherrell. The freshman big’s trey put the Crimson Tide back on top, 17-15, with about 12 minutes left in the first half.
Sears gave Alabama a lead to start, but it quickly went to the Gators, who are 4-for-4 on their last field goal attempts with a couple baskets each for Clayton and Condon.
At the first media timeout of the game, Florida leads, 9-6, with 15:58 to halftime.
The USF transfer Youngblood tried to get Alabama on the scoreboard with a 3-pointer, but the shot bounced off the rim and was grabbed by UF’s Chinyelu. The Crimson Tide’s next shot attempt was good thanks to Sears, who started his night with a jumper in the paint a little over two minutes after Florida won tip off.
Alabama basketball returns its usual starting five of Labaron Philon, Mark Sears, Chris Youngblood, Grant Nelson and Cliff Omoruyi.
Florida starts Walter Clayton Jr., Will Richard, Alijah Martin, Alex Condon and Rueben Chinyelu.
Date: Wednesday, Mar. 5
Time: 6 p.m. CT
Location: Coleman Coliseum, Tuscaloosa, Ala.
The Crimson Tide and the Gators will tip off on ESPN2 with Dave Pasch and Jay Bilas on the call.
The Alabama-Florida broadcast can be streamed through ESPN+ and Fubo starting at 6 p.m. CT.
Here are the game lines and odds from BetMGM as of Wednesday:
Struggling to get 100% healthy and stay that way ahead of the SEC Tournament, Grant Nelson (undisclosed) was listed as probable on the availability report. Freshman forward Derrion Reid (hamstring), Houston Mallette (knees) and Latrell Wrightsell Jr. (Achilles tendon) remain on the bench for Alabama.
On Tuesday evening, Florida listed all of its players as available, including Sam Alexis (ankle), who is up to return to the floor for the first time since Feb. 11.
The Crimson Tide crumbled in ‘ol Rocky Top, but back in Tuscaloosa, Alabama is out to clinch a top three seed in the SEC Tournament, which will be held from March 12-16 at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn. Here are the latest headlines surrounding Nate Oats and company:
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Emilee Smarr covers Alabama basketball and Crimson Tide athletics for the Tuscaloosa News. She can be reached via email at esmarr@gannett.com.
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Score updates, game highlights for Alabama basketball vs Florida
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Chris joined FloridaGators.com in 2011 after nearly three decades as a sports reporter at newspapers in Tampa and Orlando, including 10 years covering the UF athletic program and another 10 covering the NFL.
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No. 5 Florida at No. 7 Alabama
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The Breakdown
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| Florida | Position | Height / Weight | Class | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thomas Haugh | F | 6-9 / 215 | Sophomore | 9.1 pts / 6.1 reb |
| Rueben Chinyelu | C | 6-10 / 255 | Sophomore | 5.9 pts / 6.3 reb |
| Will Richard | G | 6-4 / 206 | Senior | 13.6 pts / 4.8 reb |
| Alijah Martin | G | 6-2 / 195 | Graduate | 14.7 pts / 4.7 reb |
| Walter Clayton Jr. | G | 6-2 / 195 | Senior | 16.9 pts / 3.7 reb / 4.0 ast |
| Alabama | Position | Height / Weight | Class | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grant Nelson | F | 6-11 / 230 | Senior | 11.8 pts / 8.0 reb |
| Clifford Omoruyi | F | 6-11 / 250 | Senior | 7.1 pts / 6.8 reb |
| Labaron Philon | G | 6-4 / 177 | Freshman | 10.4 pts / 3.2 reb |
| Chris Youngblood | G | 6-4 / 223 | Senior | 10.2 pts / 2.6 reb |
| Mark Sears | G | 6-1 / 190 | Senior | 19.1 pts / 3.0 reb / 5.0 ast |
| Florida | Statistics | Alabama |
|---|---|---|
| 83.8 | Scoring | 90.1 |
| .467 | Field-goal percentage | .483 |
| .354 | 3-point percentage | .351 |
| 67.2 | Scoring defense | 80.1 |
| .394 | Field-goal percentage defense | .418 |
| .292 | 3-point percentage defense | .301 |
| 4th | KenPom.com overall ranking | 6th |
| 4th | KenPom.com offensive efficiency | 3rd |
| 7th | KenPom.com defensive efficiency | 37th |
| 68th | KenPom.com adjusted tempo | 1st |
| 4th | NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET) ranking | 6th |
| 28th | Overall strength of schedule ranking | 1st |
