No. 24 Florida Falls Short of OT Upset vs. No. 13 Alabama, 98-93

Alabama used overtime to outlast the Florida Gators on Wednesday night in Tuscaloosa, 98-93.

The Alabama Crimson Tide (19-7, 11-2 SEC) used overtime to outlast the Florida Gators (18-8, 8-5 SEC) in an instant SEC classic on Wednesday night in Tuscaloosa.

Despite trailing for a large portion of the contest, the Crimson Tide rallied midway through the second half to put themselves within striking distance in the final minutes of regulation. Florida failed to fend off the surging Alabama squad late, allowing overtime.

There, the Tide ultimately overcame a strong outing from the Gators to post the 98-93 win.

From the opening tip, the buzz on Coleman Coliseum was palpable. 

The top-25 matchup lived up to the billing immediately as Florida and Alabama traded blows throughout the first nine minutes of the contest, including 11 lead changes and two ties.

However, the Gators attacked the interior early through its and used frequent ball movement to exploit a ball-watching Crimson Tide defense to pull slightly in front from that point forward.

Despite being outdone on the offensive boards 13-9 in the first period, the Gators connected on 40% of their shots and took advantage of their second-chance opportunities to edge out a Crimson Tide squad shooting just 11.1% from beyond the arc after 20 minutes.

Walter Clayton Jr. and Will Richard combined for 24 points, and UF assisted on 13 of its 16 made baskets to catalyze the overall impressive first-half effort.

Florida took a 41-37 advantage into the locker room break.

Alabama cut the four-point lead to begin the second half, tying the contest at 41 with an opportunity to retake its first lead since the 11:47 mark of the first half. However, uber-talented senior guard Mark Sears failed to capitalize on the opportunity, splitting his two shots at the line to remain knotted up with the Gators.

Richard made Bama pay on the ensuing possession, connecting on a triple from the corner to get UF on the board in the second half. Two possessions later, Richard connected again from the same spot on the floor to extend the lead back to five.

Florida worked the margin up to as much as seven, but the Crimson Tide again rallied.

When Bama cut the deficit to one amid a 6-0 run, making it 55-54, Gators head coach Todd Golden called a timely timeout to regroup his unit. Regroup is exactly what they did.

His unit immediately surged to reel off an 8-0 run of its own, allowing it to reclaim a nine-point lead over Alabama with 11:47 left in the contest. It swelled to a game-high ten points thanks to a Clayton triple at the 8:40 mark, signaling the potential beginning of the end for Nate Oats and Co.

But, it wasn't. 

Again, the Tide found a way to reclaim momentum behind the scoring excellence of Nick Pringle, Sam Walters and Sears, with the latter two finding their stroke from beyond the arc to produce a much more efficient showing from deep compared to the first half.

The trio willed Bama to retake its first lead since 11:47 remaining in the first half, 77-76, inducing a dramatic finish to regulation.

Florida failed to connect on its last chance of regulation despite good looks from Clayton and Zyon Pullin. Gators big man Micah Handlogten saved his team's upset hopes with an emphatic block at the buzzer on Sears at the rim out of a ghost action set.

Overtime ensued with the two squads deadlocked at 85.

Alabama reeled off a quick 7-0 run to open the impromptu third period, but Clayton's six points willed Florida to quickly close the gap to one with 35.7 seconds remaining.

However, a tip-in by Aaron Estrada on the Tide's 21st offensive rebound of the contest moved the lead back to three. Clayton failed to connect on an open look from three to tie the game as time winded down, thus putting the game on ice.

Clayton finished with 27 points to lead all Florida scorers, while Pullin, Samuel, and Richard added double-digit point totals to put the Gators in a position to pull off the upset. 

Florida shot 43.3% from the floor and 40% from three on the night, but lost the rebounding battle by ten, 54-44, en route to suffering the heartbreaking defeat. The contest featured 16 lead changes and eight ties.

The Gators will return home on Saturday to take on the Vanderbilt Commodores inside Exactech Arena following the two-game road stand.

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