The South Carolina Gamecocks and the Florida Gators meet Tuesday in college basketball action from O’Connell Center in Gainesville. Here’s a Florida vs South Carolina prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Florida vs South Carolina pick.
South Carolina Gamecocks Betting Preview
The Gamecocks got off to a pretty solid start this year, going 10-5 through the first 15 games, with defeats versus Butler, Northwestern, Virginia Tech, Clemson and Vanderbilt in that stretch. The next seven games were a 1-6 run with defeats versus Georgia, Arkansas, Auburn, Texas A&M, Florida and LSU. After two more losses to Texas and Missouri, the Gamecocks had an 11-13 record in the first 24 outings.
In game 25 on Saturday versos Alabama, the Gamecocks were in trouble at halftime, facing a 45-32 deficit on the scoreboard. South Carolina didn’t end up getting any closer than that on a 44-43 run the rest of the way and lost the game 89-75. Tops in scoring was Meechie Johnson with 26 points, four assists and three rebounds. Kobe Knox added 21 points with six boards and six assists.
Florida Gators Betting Preview
Over on the Gators’ side, they were only able to win five of their first nine games. Florida beat George Washington, Saint Francis, Colgate, Dartmouth, Georgia, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Vanderbilt and LSU over the next 10 games, then fell versus Auburn. Wins over South Carolina, Alabama and Texas A&M came after that, then a win over Georgia for an 18-6 record in the first 24 games of the season.
Matched up against Kentucky over the weekend, the Gators went into the locker room with a 43-34 advantage by halftime. Florida kept the pace from there on a 49-49 run and took the eventual victory in a home matchup 92-83. Xaivian Lee was tops on 22 points with three assists, while Alex Condon doubled up on 14 points with 11 rebounds and two assists.
South Carolina Gamecocks @ Florida Gators Betting Trends: February 17, 2026
Why the Florida Gators will win
- South Carolina has lost each of its last 15 games against AP-ranked opponents.
- Florida has won each of its last 14 February home games as a top-15 AP-ranked team.
- Florida has won the first half in 12 of its last 13 February home games as an AP-ranked team.
Florida vs South Carolina Prediction
I’ll still lean toward Florida here. The Gators dispatched a very good Kentucky team in their last outing thanks to 45.5 percent shooting and a 43-34 rebounding edge. Florida could have been a little better at the line (22-of-32 for 68.8 percent) and had 11 turnovers but there’s not much to complain about otherwise. The Gators are 10-1 in their last 11 games and sitting on a five-game win streak with 86 or more points scored in each of those.
These teams last met up back on January 28 in a 95-48 blowout win on the road for the Gators. In that one Florida hit a very nice 62.3 percent from the field with a 40-19 rebounding edge and a 54-20 advantage on points in the paint. The Gamecocks, meanwhile, hit a miserable 25.9 percent from the field with 15 percent (3-of-20) from outside. The Gators should get a nice lift from playing at home and I don’t think this rematch will be close at all.