Florida @ Cincinnati preview

Less than two weeks ago, No. 5 Florida looked like it could hang with the best teams in the country - but things have since taken a disastrous turn for the Gators as they face Cincinnati on Saturday in the Never Forget Tribute Classic in Newark, N.J. Florida has lost three in a row since opening with five straight wins, and the most recent defeat - a 65-59 stunner to visiting Loyola-Chicago - is the most concerning of all.

The Gators led by as many as 13 points against the Ramblers but went cold in the second half and finished 2-for-19 from beyond the arc en route to one of the most stunning losses by any team so far this season. "This is the lowest we can get," guard Jalen Hudson said moments after the loss. "I don't think we can get any lower than this. I'm sure we're out of the rankings; none of that even matters. But we're as low as we can get. We've got to completely change everything we're doing and go back to the basics. ... We've got to have a change of heart, a change of everything. It's not working." Things don't get any easier Saturday against the 17th-ranked Bearcats, who are looking for answers themselves after dropping a 13-point decision to rival Xavier for their first loss of the season. A loss to the Gators could knock Cincinnati out of the Top-25 rankings.

TV: 6 p.m. ET, ESPN2

ABOUT FLORIDA (5-3): Offense has been a significant issue for the Gators of late - and that's a stunning development in itself considering that they surpassed 100 points in four of their first five games. Florida shot 36.2 percent from the floor in a 17-point loss at the hands of rival Florida State, hit just 36.9 percent of its attempts in the ensuing loss to Loyola and connected on just 8-of-44 shots from 3-point range over that span. That simply won't do - especially with the Florida defense surrendering an average of 79 points through the first eight games of the season, ranking just inside the top 300 nationally.

ABOUT CINCINNATI (7-1): The Bearcats have to feel a lot better about their situation than the Gators, but would love nothing more than to bounce back from a loss to the Musketeers in which Cincinnati connected on just 8-of-28 attempts from beyond the arc and gifted Xavier 30 free-throw attempts. A strong effort Saturday against the Gators begins with leading scorer Gary Clark (13.8 points per game), who had 17 points against the Musketeers but shot just 5-of-15 from the field in his worst shooting performance of the season. The Bearcats are a beast on the boards, averaging 43.1 rebounds per game - 10th-most in Division I.

TIP-INS

1. Florida has been outscored by 44 points in its last 90 minutes of game action.

2. Hudson averages a team-best 19.4 points but had a season-low nine in the loss to Loyola.

3. Cincinnati's plus-25.1 scoring margin ranks second in the country, behind only Duke (plus-25.6).

PREDICTION: Cincinnati 72, Florida 69