Gators stand pat in BPI rankings after beating Georgia in SEC Tournament

The Basketball Power Index did not think much of Florida’s second-round win over the ‘Dawgs.

Florida basketball earned a second-round victory in the Southeastern Conference Tournament on Thursday night against the Georgia Bulldogs, 85-80, in a game that had the Gator Nation on the edge of its seat for most of the way.

In ESPN’s latest Basketball Power Index update following the win, the Orange and Blue remained in the same spot as our previous update at No. 26. That puts Todd Golden’s team between the No. 25 TCU Horned Frogs and No. 27 Cincinnati Bearcats; TCU leapfrogged Florida in this update, moving up from No. 27.

Florida’s BPI rating — a measurement of a team’s true strength moving forward — fell 0.1 points to 11.8 since the last update. The offensive BPI fell 0.1 points to 8.43 while the defensive BPI remained at 3.5.

The Gators will face the Alabama Crimson Tide in the final game of Friday’s third-round SEC Tournament slate with a tipoff time estimated around 9:30 p.m. ET. The game will once again be broadcast on the SEC Network.

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Alabama favored over Florida per BPI in SEC Tournament

Here’s what the Basketball Power Index predicts for Friday night’s SEC Tournament matchup between Florida and Alabama.

Florida basketball won its Southeastern Conference Tournament opener on Thursday night, but it was not easy, as the pesky Georgia Bulldogs gave the Gator Nation a scare; alas, Todd Golden’s gang earned the 85-80 victory to advance to the next round, where the Alabama Crimson Tide awaits.

Using the Basketball Power Index, ESPN is giving the Crimson Tide a 73.9% win probability and a projection to come out victorious by 7.5 points over the Gators. The matchup quality earned an 85.0-point grade, putting it among the top 10 games played on Friday.

“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.”

Florida is ranked No. 35 in the NET rankings, while Alabama is No. 8, which makes it a Quadrant 1 game for both teams.

Tipoff between the Gators and the Tide is slated for sometime around 9:30 p.m. ET on Friday night as it is the final game on the day’s roster.

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Basketball Power Index unfazed by Florida’s loss at Vanderbilt

Florida actually rose one spot in ESPN’s BPI after the tough Vandy road loss.

The road woes returned for Florida basketball on Saturday in Nashville as the Gators were unable to put away a tenacious Vanderbilt Commodores team, allowing the home squad to hang around long enough to seize a 79-78 last-minute victory.

In ESPN’s latest Basketball Power Index update following the loss, the Orange and Blue actually rose a spot from our previous update to No. 26; it also represents a one-spot increase from Saturday’s pregame rankings. That puts Todd Golden’s team between the No. 25 Villanova Wildcats and No. 27 TCU Horned Frogs.

Florida’s BPI rating — a measurement of a team’s true strength moving forward — fell 0.1 points to 11.9 since the last update. The offensive BPI fell 0.2 points to 8.4 while the defensive BPI inched up 0.1 points to 3.5.

Florida is a No. 6 seed in the Southeastern Conference Tournament, giving it a first-round bye and matching the Gators up with the winner of Game 2 on Thursday, March 14, inside Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. Tipoff is slated for a late 9:30 p.m. ET start on the SEC Network.

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Florida favored by double digits over Vanderbilt, per ESPN’s BPI

The Basketball Power Index expects the Gators to take care of business in Nashville on Saturday.

Florida basketball prepares for the final game of the Southeastern Conference and regular-season schedule on Saturday as it travels to Nashville for a rematch with the Vanderbilt Commodores.

Using the Basketball Power Index, ESPN is giving the Florida Gators an 89.2% win probability and with a projection to come out victorious by 13.7 points over the Commodores. The matchup quality earned a 62.2-point grade, which is among the less exciting games being played on that day.

“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.”

Florida is ranked No. 28 in the NET rankings coming in while Vanderbilt is No. 216, which makes it a Quadrant 3 game for the Gators and a Quadrant 1 game for the Commodores.

Florida and Vanderbilt tangle on Saturday, with tipoff slated for 4:30 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on the SEC Network.

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Gators inch up Basketball Power Index rankings after beating ‘Bama

Florida is (just barely) a top 25 team in ESPN’s BPI rankings.

Todd Golden’s Gators played their hearts out on Senior Night inside the O’Connell Center with a 105-87 thrashing of the Alabama Crimson Tide — owner of the top offensive efficiency in the nation coming into the game. Florida’s big win in its penultimate game of the regular season was a fitting way to begin wrapping up a fantastic second half.

In ESPN’s latest Basketball Power Index update following the victory, the Orange and Blue rose two spots since our previous update, now sitting at No. 27 overall; that nestles them between the No. 24 Texas Longhorns and No. 26 Dayton Flyers. It also represents a one-spot from Tuesday’s pregame rankings.

Florida’s BPI rating — a measurement of a team’s true strength moving forward — fell 0.4 points to 12.0 since the last update. The offensive BPI rose 0.3 points to 8.6 while the defensive BPI inched up 0.1 points to 3.4.

The win-loss projection rose to 21.9-9.1 as did the prediction for the conference schedule, which also rose to 11.9-6.1. ESPN gives Florida less than a 0.1% chance to win the Southeastern Conference while the remaining strength of schedule ranks at No. 140.

Florida wraps up its regular-season schedule on Saturday, March 9, in Nashville as the Gators travel for a rematch with the Vanderbilt Commodores. Tipoff is slated for 4:30 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on the SEC Network.

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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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Florida up a spot in Basketball Power Index after road loss

The Gators remain buoyant in ESPN’s BPI rankings.

Florida basketball is currently putting the finishing touches on a fine regular-season schedule, but unfortunately, hit a roadblock on Saturday afternoon in Columbia where the South Carolina Gamecocks mounted a second-half comeback to emerge with the 82-76 victory over the Gators.

In ESPN’s latest Basketball Power Index update following the loss, the Orange and Blue rose a spot since our previous update, now sitting at No. 27 overall; that nestles them between the No. 26 TCU Horned Frogs and No. 28 Dayton Flyers. However, it also represents a two-spot drop from Saturday’s pregame rankings.

Florida’s BPI rating — a measurement of a team’s true strength moving forward — fell 0.1 points to 11.6 since the last update. The offensive BPI rose 0.1 points to 8.3 while the defensive BPI fell 0.2 points to 3.3.

The win-loss projection fell to 21.3-9.7 as did the prediction for the conference schedule, which fell to 11.3-6.8. ESPN gives Florida less than a 0.1% chance to win the Southeastern Conference while the remaining strength of schedule ranks at No. 63.

The Gators return home for a rematch against the Alabama Crimson Tide on Tuesday, March 5, inside the O’Connell Center. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on ESPN.

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Gators-Gamecocks essentially even in ESPN’s BPI prediction

The Basketball Power Index is ostensibly dead even on Saturday afternoon’s matchup.

Three games remain for Florida basketball, with the first coming this Saturday at the South Carolina Gamecocks in Columbia as the Gators look to continue improving its postseason standing.

Using the Basketball Power Index, ESPN gives the Gamecocks just a 50.3% win probability and projects them to come out on top by only 0.1 points over the Gators on Saturday. The matchup quality earned a 92.1-point grade, making it the fourth-highest-rated game on a busy day of college basketball.

“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. 34 in the NET, while South Carolina is playing a Quad 2 game ranked No. 47 coming in.

The Gators and South Carolina are set to tangle on Saturday, March 2 in the clash of two SEC titans. Tipoff is scheduled for noon ET and the game will be broadcast on ESPN.

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Gators slide after win but still in Basketball Power Index top 30

The win over Mizzou did not impress the ESPN’s BPI.

Florida basketball has now won nine of its last 11 games — all in Southeastern Conference play — to improve to 20-8 overall and 10-5 against SEC competition. That streak of success started on the road at the Missouri Tigers in January and just came full circle with the Gators’ Wednesday night win inside the O’Connell Center.

In ESPN’s latest Basketball Power Index update following the win, the Orange and Blue fell three spots since our previous update, now sitting at No. 28 overall; that nestles them between the No. 27 Dayton Flyers and No. 29 Florida Atlantic Owls.

Florida’s BPI rating — a measurement of a team’s true strength moving forward — fell 0.1 points to 11.7 since the last update. The offensive BPI remained at 8.2 while the defensive BPI rose 0.1 points to 3.5.

The win-loss projection improved ever-so-slightly to 21.8-9.2 along with an 11.8-6.2 prediction for the conference schedule. ESPN gives Florida a distant 0.4% chance to win the Southeastern Conference while the remaining strength of schedule ranks at No. 41.

Florida hits the road to take on the No. 18 South Carolina Gamecocks on Saturday, March 2 in the first of the final three games of the season. Tipoff is scheduled for noon ET and the game will be broadcast on ESPN.

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Gators slip a spot after Vanderbilt win in Basketball Power Index

Florida slips a spot in ESPN’s BPI but are still among the top 25.

Todd Golden and the Florida basketball team returned on the winning track Saturday afternoon in Gainesville with a 77-64 victory over the Vanderbilt Commodores. Now winners of eight of the last 10, the Gators are making a strong push for a postseason bid with just a handful of games remaining.

In ESPN’s latest Basketball Power Index update following the win, the Orange and Blue fell a spot since our previous update, now sitting at No. 25 overall; that nestles them between the No. 24 TCU Horned Frogs and No. 26 Dayton Flyers.

Florida’s BPI rating — a measurement of a team’s true strength moving forward — fell 0.1 points to 11.8. The offensive BPI fell 0.4 points to 8.2 while the defensive BPI rose 0.2 points to 3.4.

The win-loss projection remained at 21.7-9.3 along with an 11.7-6.3 prediction for the conference schedule. ESPN gives Florida a distant 1.0% chance to win the Southeastern Conference while the remaining strength of schedule ranks at No. 70.

The Gators remain in the O’Connell Center for their next game against the visiting Missouri Tigers, who come to town on Wednesday, Feb. 28. Tipoff is slated for 6:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on the SEC Network.

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