Florida vs. Kentucky Prediction, Preview, and Odds
The Florida Gators travel to the Blue Grass State on Wednesday night to take on the Kentucky Wildcats in an SEC showdown. The Gators are 14-6 on the season including a record of 4-3 in conference play. The Wildcats are 15-4 on the season and 5-2 in SEC play thus far. The opening tap for this classic conference matchup is scheduled for 8:00 PM EST.
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Gators Looking for Signature Win
The Florida Gators head into Kentucky amid a three-game winning streak after losing three of four SEC games, including one to these same Wildcats. On Saturday, the Gators survived the Georgia Bulldogs in a thrilling 102-98 overtime win at home. Florida guard Zyon Pullin drilled two clutch free throws with just over five seconds left in the game to clinch the win over the Bulldogs after the Gators had coughed up a lead that ballooned to as much as 21 points in the second half. Pullin finished with 20 points including seven in the extra session. Gators' center Micah Handlogten led the way with 23 points and a career-high 17 rebounds while hitting 10-of-13 shots.
"A win's a win," UF coach Todd Golden said. "The great thing is we can learn from it positively and not have a tough weekend thinking about a brutal loss. That's part of growing as a program."
The Gators have been one of the better offensive teams in the SEC this season. The Gators are third in the conference in scoring this season. They are also fourth in field goal percentage and eighth in 3-point field goal percentage. The Gators are also eighth in the SEC in 3-point field goals made per game. The Gators have an +8.6 scoring margin thus far this season. They are holding the opposition to 43% shooting overall and 33% from 3-point range. On the glass, the Gators have been the best rebounding team in the conference. They are just 13th in the SEC in turnover margin this season.
Key Injuries: F Aleks Szymczyk (foot) is out until early February.
NCAAB Predictions and find your match.
Wildcats Hope to Keep Rising
The 6th-ranked Kentucky Wildcats have now won three of four games following a 63-57 win over Arkansas on the road Saturday night. Antonio Reeves led the Wildcats with 24 points despite a slow start. Reeves made just one of his first five shots but finished the game 9-of-20 from the field including 4-of-8 from 3-point range. Reed Sheppard played a critical role for the Wildcats as well thanks to 14 points, all in the second half. Reeves added five assists, four rebounds, and four steals as well. Tre Mitchell also had a big night with a double-double of 10 points and 11 rebounds.
The Wildcats hope to make it four wins in five tries when they host Florida on Wednesday night. Kentucky has already upended the Gators in Florida this season just two weeks ago. In conference play, the Wildcats are second in scoring this season. They are first in both field goal percentage and 3-point shooting in SEC play as well. The Wildcats are second in the conference in 3-point field goals made per contest. Kentucky owns a +12.3 scoring margin edge this season. They are holding the opposition to 42% shooting thus far in the SEC and 32% from long range. The Wildcats are 7th in the SEC in total rebounds per game this season and second in the conference in turnover margin.
Key Injuries: G Rob Dillingham (illness) is questionable.
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Best Bets for this Game
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The first matchup was a tale of two halves. The Wildcats fell behind by 8 at the half thanks to a hot-shooting Florida team that included the Gators hitting on 8-of-20 3-point shots in the first half. The Wildcats, meanwhile, hit on just 1-of-10 three-point shots in the first half and recovered to hit on 4-of-10 in the second half. Kentucky is the better team with a more efficient offense and a 3-point game that was underutilized and ineffective in the first game but still good enough to beat the Gators. The Wildcats were also able to hang in there with the top rebounding team in the conference on the road, losing the rebounding battle just 43-40. Florida lost the turnover battle 11-9 in the first game which is an improvement for the typically careless Gators. I expect both teams to return to form in the rematch and Kentucky to pull away from the Gators. Kentucky is 10-1 at home this season and should have the edge against a Gators team that has only won once away from home this season.
Take the Wildcats.
Prediction: Kentucky to cover
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These are two of the top three scoring teams in the SEC this season. The first game went over 170 points while both teams were far from scintillating from the field. Kentucky shot under 50% from the floor and struggled from long range, two things that I don't expect to happen at home in the second matchup. The Gators play at one of the fastest paces in the country, ranked 19th in pace of play this season. Still, they don't play as fast as the Wildcats. Kentucky comes in ranked 13th in the nation in pace of play this season. Expect an up-tempo game that will eventually favor the Wildcats but certainly push over the total.
Take the over.
Prediction: Over
Mark has been a sports fanatic since childhood. He is also an avid follower of sports analytics and has used it in his own betting analysis for over two decades. Now we have Mark on our team here at Stat Salt. He holds degrees in marketing, broadcasting, and English and uses this vast array of assets to dissect and analyze game matchups. Mark will provide you with a wide variety of statistics to consider and a strong opinion in each matchup that he covers. Please follow him daily for an up-to-the-minute analysis of all the important games.
