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Alabama basketball vs Florida in SEC Tournament: Score prediction, scouting report
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- Alabama basketball vs Florida in SEC Tournament: Score prediction, scouting report
Alabama basketball is aiming to score a victory over Florida for a second time this season in the SEC Tournament .
The No. 3 seed Crimson Tide beat the No. 6 seed Gators at Coleman Coliseum earlier in the season, but it took overtime to do so. Then Florida returned the favor in Gainesville about a week ago, beating Alabama 105-87.
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Coming into the game against Florida on the road, guard Latrell Wrightsell Jr. returned from an injury that kept him out four games. He saw a couple minutes in the loss, but Alabama coach Nate Oats was easing him back into the lineup. Now, Wrightsell is full-go, and that's significant. He's one of the nation's most efficient offensive players, and he has the lowest turnover rate among Crimson Tide players, per KenPom. He's the X-factor for the Alabama offense. His return will make this matchup more compelling than it was in Gainesville.
Buckle up and get ready for what could be a high-scoring affair. These teams feature two of the nation's best offenses and both play an up-tempo style. The winner will advance to the SEC Tournament semifinals on Saturday.
Here's a look at Florida (22-10), how it stacks up with Alabama (21-10) and a score prediction for the game at Bridgestone Arena.
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Projected starting lineup for Florida vs. Alabama basketball
Guard Walter Clayton (junior):6-foot-3, 195 pounds. Averages: 17 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.1 steals, 0.7 blocks, 2.3 turnovers.
Guard Zyon Pullin (senior):6-foot-4, 206 pounds. Averages: 15.7 points, 3.8 rebounds, 5 assists, 0.9 steals, 0.1 blocks, 1.1 turnovers.
Forward Will Richard (junior):6-foot-4, 206 pounds. Averages: 11.2 points, 3.9 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 0.9 steals, 0.5 blocks, 1.4 turnovers.
Forward Tyrese Samuel (senior):6-foot-10, 239 pounds. Averages: 13.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.2 steals, 1.1 blocks, 1.8 turnovers.
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Center Micah Handlogten (sophomore):7-foot-1, 235 pounds. Averages: 5.9 points, 7.3 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 0.6 steals, 1 block, 0.8 turnovers.
Florida's rotation
The Gators have eight players who average 13.6 or more points per game. Outside of the starting group, Riley Kugel (23.8 minutes), Alex Condon (19.7) and Thomas Haugh (13.6) see the most time.
How Florida stacks up with Alabama in scoring, defense and tempo
KenPom tracks adjusted offensive and defensive efficiency, which are points scored and allowed per 100 possessions. The Gators and Crimson Tide are similar in that their offenses are elite but their defenses aren't particularly strong.
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Florida will look to play fast, but not quite as fast as Alabama. KenPom measures the adjusted tempo statistic based on the number of possessions per 40 minutes.
Adjusted offensive efficiency:
Florida: 119.4 (16th nationally)
Alabama: 126.1 (3rd)
Adjusted defensive efficiency:
Florida: 101.6 (89th nationally)
Alabama: 102.8 (105th)
Tempo
Florida: 71.1 (31st nationally)
Alabama: 72.7 (11th)
Score prediction
Alabama 88, Florida 85:This game figures to be competitive with two elite offenses. There could be even more points than this, but the Crimson Tide finds a way to edge out the Gators in this back-and-forth game.
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Nick Kelly is the Alabama beat writer for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network, and he covers Alabama football and men's basketball. Reach him at nkelly@gannett.com or follow him @_NickKelly on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter .
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Alabama basketball vs Florida: Scouting report, score prediction
