Florida Gators Leap Up AP Poll After ESPN Events Invitational Win

The Florida Gators continue their undefeated start to the season, and are rewarded for it with a nice bump in the rankings

The Gators are rewarded in the rankings again for their strong start / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The Florida Gators get a nice boost in the recent AP Poll, moving up five spots from No. 18 to No. 13. 

For the second straight week, the Gators moved up multiple spots. The week before, they moved up three spots from No. 21 to No. 18. 

Florida continues its undefeated start to the season, winning its first eight games. They also made a statement with their performance in the ESPN Events Invitational over Thanksgiving. 

In the first round of the tournament on Thanksgiving Day, they were pivoted against the 6-1 Wake Forrest Demon Decans. After a tight first half, the Gators pulled away, outscoring them 43-30 in the second half to win 75-58. 

In the championship the following day, the Gators steamrolled Wichita State to win 88-51 and be victors of the regular-season tournament. 

Apart from the opening game scare against USF, were the Gators still won by 15 in the end, the Gators have rolled past their competition. Five of their opponents were taken down by 20 points or more. Every win has been by double-digits. Rival Florida State had the closest final score, and Florida won by 13. 

The Gators' next opponent will be the Virginia Cavaliers at home in Gainesville. Virginia has been unranked to start the season and only received votes in the Coaches Poll in the preseason poll. 

The Cavaliers are 0-2 against ranked opponents this season. They lost 64-42 to Tennessee and followed it up with a loss to St. John’s the following game. The Red Storm have dropped out of the top 25 since then, which doesn’t help their case. 

ESPN Analytics gives the Gators a 90.2% chance to win. Tip-off is set for 7:15 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 4.