ESPN’s BPI says Florida is an underdog at home vs. Alabama

Florida gets its shot at revenge against Alabama Tuesday, but the Gators are underdogs at home, according to ESPN’s Basketball Power Index.

After another second-half collapse and loss to South Carolina, Florida basketball faces a massive test at home in the penultimate game of the regular season against the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Using the Basketball Power Index, ESPN gives the Crimson Tide a 62.3%  win probability against the Gators and projects them to come out on top by only 3.7 points over the Gators on Tuesday. The matchup quality earned a 91.6-point grade, making it the second-highest-rated game on the daily slate.

“BPI is a measure of team strength that is meant to be the best predictor of performance going forward,” the site reads. “BPI represents how many points above or below average a team is… Game predictions account for opponent strength, pace of play, site, travel distance, day’s rest and altitude, and are used to simulate the season 10,000 times to produce season projections.”

The game will be of the Quadrant 1 variety for Florida, which enters the matchup ranked No. 33 in the NET, while Alabama is also playing a Quad 1 game ranked No. 7 coming in.

Florida and Alabama will clash on Tuesday, March 5 at the O’Connell Center in Gainesville. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on ESPN.

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