Resume Check: Looking ahead to South Carolina basketball's next opponent, the Florida Gators

South Carolina almost broke through for its first SEC win of the season but fell short again against Ole Miss. The Gamecocks lost to the Rebels 72-68 inside Colonial Life Arena on Wednesday.

Lamont Paris and company will have a tough test this weekend as they seek out that elusive first win in conference play. South Carolina must travel south to Gainesville for a date with the Florida Gators.

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Resume Check: Florida Gators

Record: 21-3 (8-3 in SEC)
AP Ranking: No. 3
Last Week: Win over Auburn 90-81 in Auburn; Win over Mississippi State 81-68 in Starkville
Previous Meeting: Florida won 70-69 in Columbia on January 22nd

Florida has been ranked in the AP top 25 all season for a reason. UF is having its best season in a long time and will challenge for one of the top seeds in this year’s NCAA Tournament.

The Gators went 13-0 during their non-conference schedule, including a win over the North Carolina Tar Heels in Charlotte. Ranked 3rd in the country, Florida has wins over two separate No. 1 teams this season (Tennessee and Auburn).

This Saturday will mark the second time this season that the Gamecocks and Gators play. South Carolina will look for revenge for one of its many close losses in SEC play. In January, Florida won by a single point in Columbia.

Heading into this week, Florida is 4th in the SEC in scoring (83.6 points per game). They also are 3rd in the league in scoring defense (66.5 points per game). The Gators rebound at the second-best rate in the SEC and third-best rate in the country. In other words, Todd Golden’s team is really good.

Four Florida starters score in double-figures as Walter Clayton, Jr., Alijah Martin, Will Richard, and Alex Condon combine to put 56.6 points on the board each night. Both Clayton and Martin have had 30-point outings this season. Three Gators (Condon, Rueben Chinyelu, and Thomas Haugh) all average at least 6.2 rebounds per game. The trio all have double-doubles this year, and Haugh nearly logged a triple-double against Mississippi State earlier this week.

Coming into the game against South Carolina, the Florida Gators could be shorthanded. Thanks to a broken leg suffered last season, 7’1″ post player Micah Handlogten is redshirting this year (along with 7’9″ center Olivier Rioux). However, starting guard Alijah Martin has missed the past several games with a hip injury. He was supposedly returning for Florida’s win over Mississippi State, but Golden listed him as “out” on the availability report. Then, against the Bulldogs, starting big Alex Condon left the game early with an ankle injury. His status for Saturday is up in the air.

The Gamecocks and Gators will tip off at 8:30 p.m. in the O’Connell Center on Saturday. SEC Network will broadcast the game, and the ESPN app will stream it.

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