Alabama @ Florida preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 16, 2019 ) Florida 71, Alabama 53

For the first time since 2008, Alabama and Florida meet in their SEC opener as they battle in Gainesville on Saturday evening. The Gators closed out their up-and-down nonconference slate with a dominant 102-63 triumph over Long Beach State while the Crimson Tide head into conference play on a roll, winning three straight and five of the last six after beating Richmond 90-78 on Sunday.

Alabama scored at least 90 points in those last three victories, the first time since the 2000-01 season that the Crimson Tide has hit that mark in three straight games. Along the way, they averaged 95.7 points and shot 49.7 percent from the field, including 44.9 percent from deep. But while the Crimson Tide seem to be on the rise after their 2-4 start in coach Nate Oats' first season at the helm, the Gators remain inconsistent, following up their last two wins with losses as they wrapped up one of the toughest nonconference schedules in the country. Making matters even more difficult, Florida may face the high-scoring Tide without its best defender as guard Scottie Lewis may miss his second straight game with a concussion.

TIME: 6 p.m. ET. TV: ESPN2

ABOUT ALABAMA (7-5, 0-0 SEC): Freshman Jaden Shackelford comes off a career-high 28-point effort to pace the Tide against Richmond, while junior John Petty Jr. has scored in double figures in eight of the last nine games, including 17 points in that victory. Petty (16.4 ppg) is second on the team in scoring behind Kira Lewis Jr. (16.6 ppg) thanks to his sharp-shooting ability from deep as he ranks fourth in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage (51.2) and is tied for seventh in treys made per game (3.5). Led by Petty (7.4) and Lewis (5.5), the Crimson Tide are dominating the boards and have been outrebounded in just three games, although overall they own just a plus-3.2 advantage on the glass.

ABOUT FLORIDA (8-4, 0-0): The Gators have been struggling to score consistently, but they come off their first 100-point performance in more than two years, with six players scoring in double figures. Florida shot 54.0 percent from the floor in that win - its best shooting performance at home this year -- and made a season-best 12 3-pointers, with its only two double-digit scorers of the season Kerry Blackshear (14.2 ppg) and Keyontae Johnson (13.3) each topping the team with 21 points. The duo also leads the team in rebounding, with Blackshear pulling down 8.4 boards per game and Johnson chipping in with 6.4, but sophomore Noah Locke came up big against Long Beach State with 10 rebounds along with 16 points to post the first double-double of his career.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Alabama owns a 75-69 advantage in this series, but Florida earned a 71-53 victory at the Crimson Tide in the last matchup back in February.

2. The last six regular-season meetings were won by the road team - four in Tuscaloosa and two in Gainesville.

3. Fourteen of the last 20 meetings have been decided by 10 points or less.

PREDICTION: Florida 77, Alabama 75