The Florida Gators and the Kentucky Wildcats meet Saturday in college basketball action from Rupp Arena in Lexington. Here’s a Kentucky vs. Florida prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Kentucky vs. Florida pick.
Florida Gators Betting Preview
The Gators got through their first 14 games on a 9-5 clip this year, then took wins in the next five over Georgia, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Vanderbilt, and LSU. After a loss to Auburn came wins over South Carolina, Alabama, Texas A&M, Georgia, Kentucky, South Carolina, Ole Miss, Texas, Arkansas, and Mississippi State. That gives the Gators a nice 24-6 run so far this year.
In the Mississippi State matchup on Tuesday, the Gators were coming off the floor after the first half with a 47-35 advantage. Florida got even better from there on a 61-39 run and took the blowout win on their home court in the end, 108-74. Alex Condon led the team with his 26 points, seven rebounds, and three assists. Xaivian Lee added 19 points with five rebounds and six assists as well.
Kentucky Wildcats Betting Preview
Over on the Kentucky side, they were 14-6 at the 20-game mark this year. The Wildcats lost to Vanderbilt and then beat Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Tennessee. Since then it’s been a 2-4 run over the last six games with losses to Florida, Georgia, Auburn, and Texas A&M among wins over South Carolina and Vanderbilt. That gives the Wildcats a 19-11 run through 30 games this year.
Matched up against Texas A&M this week, the Wildcats were sitting in the locker room with a 45-33 deficit at the break. Kentucky didn’t get much better from there on a 52-51 second-half run and lost the game on the road 96-85 as things came to a close. Otga Oweh led the way with his 24 points, nine rebounds, five assists, and three steals. Mouhamed Dioubate added 19 points with seven rebounds.
Why the Kentucky Wildcats will win
- Kentucky has won 35 of its last 38 day games against conference opponents at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center.
- Florida has lost three of its last four games at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center.
- The home team has won the first half in each of the last six games between Florida and Kentucky.
Why the Florida Gators will win
- Florida has won each of its last 11 March games as a top-15 AP-ranked team.
- Kentucky has lost each of its last four games against top 10 AP-ranked opponents.
- Florida has won the first half in 17 of its last 18 March games as a top-15 AP-ranked team.
Kentucky vs Florida Prediction
I’ll just stick with the Gators. In their win over Mississippi State this week, the Gators shot a nice 54.9 percent from the field with a 51-22 rebounding edge and just four turnovers. Florida added 22 points off 13 Bulldogs turnovers but did miss a few free throws (10 of 17 for 58.8 percent) along the way. The Gators are sitting on a nice 10-game win streak right now, scoring 84 or more points in nine of those outings (76 in the other).
Back on Valentine’s Day when these teams last met up, the Gators powered out a 92-83 victory on their home floor. In that matchup Florida shot 45.5 percent from the field with a 43-34 rebounding edge and 25 points from 12 Kentucky turnovers. The foul shooting wasn’t spectacular in this one either (22-of-32 for 68.8 percent) but it didn’t end up making a ton of difference. I’d like to see a more dominant effort in the road rematch from the Gators before they head into the postseason.