Florida Hosts LSU in SEC Clash

The Florida Gators men’s basketball team will host the LSU Tigers Wednesday at 8 p.m. in Exactech Arena. The match will mark the only regular season meeting between the two teams, as Florida enters with five wins in its last six games.

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The Gators are coming off a huge win, as the team blew out No.12 Auburn 81-65 at home, improving their home record 10-1 on the season.

Both Teams On the Brink

After dominating Auburn on Saturday, the Gators currently sit in a three-way tie for fifth in the SEC, with Kentucky and Texas A&M. Florida is one game behind Tennessee to tie the Vols for fourth in the conference.

On the other side of the court, LSU has lost five of its past six games, most recently suffering an at home 109-92 loss against No. 16 Alabama. The Tigers stand in tenth place in the SEC and are one in six teams with a sub-.500 record in conference play.

With the NCAA tournament looming, the Gators must protect their home court to secure placement.

Key Players

Florida

Graduate transfer guard Zyon Pullin leads the SEC in both assist/turnover ratio (4.1) and conference play (4.5). His 5.0 assists per game also claims second in the conference.

Pullin, this season, is scoring 10+ points in every appearance and claimed the fifth-longest 20-game double-figure scoring streak by a Gator since the  1996-97 season.

Making his impact in Orange & Blue 🐊#GoGators | @Zyonpullin2 pic.twitter.com/H7H2E3NNZ6

— Florida Gators Men’s Basketball (@GatorsMBK) February 11, 2024

Walter Clayton Jr. leads the Gators in points per game with 16. Clayton Jr. recently put up 20 points to aid Florida to victory over Auburn. Tyrese Samuel leads Florida in rebounds, putting up 8.1 per game. Head coach Todd Golden commented on the bigs this season.

LSU

Jalen Cook leads the offense for the Tigers with 15.9 points and 2.8 assists per game. Cook has a couple of 30-point games on his resume, as he returned to LSU for his junior year after being at Tulane last season. While with the Green Wave, Cook was a two-time first-team All-American Athletic Conference selection and the program’s all-time assist leader.

On the defensive end, Will Baker puts up 5.1 rebounds per game for LSU. Baker shoots 54% from the floor and 36% from the 3-point line.

What to Expect

The Gators are looking to build some conference momentum, while the Tigers need to break a two-game losing streak. Tipoff is is set for 8 p.m.