Can The Florida Gators Upset The Kentucky Wildcats Tonight in Gainesville?
Can The Florida Gators Upset The Kentucky Wildcats Tonight in Gainesville? Tonight’s game is a very interesting matchup and could be a difficult one for the Gators as their best player, Colin Castleton is out for the year. He broke his hand in Florida’s 79-64 win over Ole Miss on Feb. 15. Lets break down tonight’s contest.
Kentucky at Florida Gators – Wednesday, 7 ET on ESPN
Florida’s chances of making it to the NCAA Tournament are not looking too good at the moment, with just a 10% chance. However, it’s interesting to note that they have a relatively high chance (18%) of winning all of their remaining games in the SEC, which is only surpassed by Alabama and Tennessee, who are likely to be Top-2 seeds in the conference.
Kentucky has improved its position in ESPN Bracketologist Joe Lunardi’s projections and has moved into the NCAA Tournament field. The fact that they have just defeated then-No. 10 Tennessee is certainly a positive sign for the team, and it’s no surprise that their chances of making the tournament have gone up as a result.
The Wildcats now have a 96% chance to reach the NCAA Tournament per ESPN Analytics.
Kentucky Going For 5 Straight In Gainesville!
Kentucky has had such success in recent years when playing in Gainesville against the Florida Gators. Winning four consecutive meetings is certainly a noteworthy accomplishment, and it’s interesting to see that this is the longest such win streak since 1995-98, when they also won four straight.
This game could be decided on the boards. Kentucky rebounds 37.9 percent of its own misses this season, the third highest rate in Division I. The Wildcats cash in on those opportunities by scoring 13.9 Second Chance points per game, the ninth-most in Division I.
Can The Florida Gators Overcome Castelton’s absence?
It’s always difficult for a team to lose a key player, such as the Gators losing Castleton, but it’s great to see that they have a freshman guard in Riley Kugel who has been stepping up offensively in Castleton’s absence.
Scoring in double figures in four straight games is certainly an impressive feat for any player, let alone a freshman. With an average of 15.5 points per game during that span, Kugel has shown that he is capable of taking on a larger role in the team’s offense and making a significant impact on the court.
I think Kentucky gets it done tonight however. My prediction is Kentucky 65 Florida 55. More on this game and lots more coming up on Shemon and Sheppard 2-6pm today.
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