Florida basketball was unable to make it two in a row on Saturday night when it visited the Kentucky Wildcats inside Rupp Arena and came away with a 72-67 loss to its Southeastern Conference rivals. The Gators came out sluggish again, shooting just 27% from the field in the first half while allowing the ‘Cats to run wild on transition, making a comeback — which UF nearly completed — the near-Sisyphean task as it has been all season.
On Sunday morning following the defeat, Florida found itself in the exact same spot as before according to ESPN’s Basketball Power Index, in which the Gators ranked No. 34 ahead of the game and maintained that ranking afterward. UF’s strength of schedule now sits at No. 15 in the nation while the strength of record is at No. 61. Kentucky oddly dropped from No. 22 to No. 24 after the victory.
Next up for the Orange and Blue is another tough opponent in the fifth-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide, who host Florida on Wednesday, Feb. 8, inside Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The Tide are currently ranked No. 3 in the BPI. Tipoff for the midweek affair is scheduled for 9 p.m. EST and the game can be followed by watching ESPN2 or listening to the Gator Sports Network.
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