Three Takeaways From Alabama Basketball's Catastrophic SEC Tournament Loss to Florida

The Crimson Tide fell to the Gators 104-82 in the SEC Tournament semifinal—eliminating Alabama from reaching the conference championship game.

Mar 15, 2025; Nashville, TN, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nate Oats talks with a referee against the Florida Gators during the second half at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Roberts-Imagn Images | Steve Roberts-Imagn Images

NASHVILLE — 3-seed Alabama men's basketball was obliterated by 2-seed Florida 104-82 on Saturday in the SEC Tournament semifinal. This loss eliminated the Crimson Tide from reaching the conference championship game as the Gators will face Tennessee on Sunday.

Alabama went bucket for bucket with Florida in the first half, but a big run by the Gators out of the break changed everything.

There's so much to dissect from this matchup at Bridgestone Arena. Here are three takeaways:

Gators Chomp Alabama Guards

Alabama forward Grant Nelson ranks No. 2 on the team in points per game this season, but only guards make up No. 1 and 3-5. These players are All-SEC First Team member Mark Sears, freshman phenom Labaron Philon and sharpshooters Aden Holloway and Chris Youngblood.

Like Alabama, Florida's guards are big-time scorers as the position holds the top-3 spots on the team in points per game. These players are All-SEC First Team member Walter Clayton Jr., Alijah Martin and Will Richard––all of which average at least 13 points.

This battle between some of the nation's top guard tandems had a lot of hype around it, but it was simply not a contest from the very beginning. Clayton scored 22 points on 6 of 11 from deep with six assists, and Martin and Richard each scored 16.

Youngblood was one of Alabama's minuscule bright lights as he finished with 14 points, but Sears added nine on 3-for-10 shooting and Philon had three on 1 of 9. That's right, one of the best backcourt duos in the country shot a combined 4-of-19 in the semifinal round of a postseason conference tournament.

"We got outscored 54-26 with the three starting guards from them and our three starting guards," Alabama head coach Nate Oats said during the postgame press conference. "To me, though, it was more when you get locked into what you have to do to win a game, and you're really talented on offense, the offense takes care of itself a lot.

"I go back to, like, what we said we were going to be. Were we the hardest playing, toughest team on the floor? Was our backcourt the hardest playing, toughest backcourt on the floor? If we were locked into the defensive end, we're playing off stops more, I think the offense comes a lot easier."

Oats singled out Philon who he said struggled on both sides of the ball "for large parts of the game." Philon had one of the best games of his career on Friday against Kentucky. Oats explained that his typical two-way excellence will be needed for the NCAA Tournament and that Florida already has a leg up in that regard.

"They've got a tough backcourt," Oats said. "They're very good defensively, too. They got some of the best defensive guards in the country, as well. So they obviously did a good job with us."

Early Second Half Run Tells Tale

The Crimson Tide trailed Florida 47-45 at the break. Considering how the first game went on March 5, as Alabama lost 99-94 but had a big comeback late to make it a more respectable score, this was a relatively positive start against the Gators––a current No. 1 seed projection in the NCAA Tournament.

Late in the first half, Alabama forward Grant Nelson hobbled off the court with a knee injury. The Tide stayed the course in those final minutes, but when Nelson didn't start in the second half, the Gators absolutely chomped Alabama on at the start of the second half as they went on an astounding 17-2 run.

Timeouts are a way to cool down opponents if they're on a hot streak. However, Alabama head coach Nate Oats didn't seem to have interest in giving his team a short break, even when down 64-50 after five minutes of being slaughtered.

"I told them, 'Do you want me to call a timeout and tell them to play harder?' We sat in the video room after the first time we played Florida," Oats said. "We said we're going to be the hardest playing, toughest team. It's not because we're tired. We can make up a lot of excuses.

"We played last night, they played last night. 15-minute break at halftime, they played harder than us. You guys got to determine whether you're going to play tougher or not. Then you figure some stuff out, to be honest with you. They need to figure out whether they wanted to be the hardest playing, toughest team on the floor or not."

The Crimson Tide never really reset itself after the big run. Scoring improved but the defense remained the same throughout. In fact, the 104 points allowed by Alabama to Florida is an SEC Tournament record––one that previously lasted for 27 years.

What is Florida's Secret?

Alabama has lost its last four matchups against Florida. Here is the Gators' point total for each game. 105, 102, 99 and now 104. The Crimson Tide's defense has been a shaky subject for the past couple of years but it has shown positive signs against many SEC teams.

Not Florida. There's no denying that Florida head coach Todd Golden has Oats and Alabama's number. So what has Golden and the Gators been doing to the Tide the past two years?

"They do a good job running us off the line...They've done a better job getting their guards going, open than we have," Oats said. "They've done a good job running us off the line, pushing us into their shot-blockers. I don't think we made great rim decisions. We didn't finish well at the rim.

"Good shot-blocking. We didn't make great reads. They've done a good job. I don't think we'll see them till maybe an Elite Eight or Final Four game, depending on where we all get placed. They're good. They've had our number here for the last couple of weeks. If we are fortunate enough to get a third crack, we're going to have to do some things different, that's for sure."

Golden also had ideas as to why his team has overpowered Alabama and Saturday was the most evident of that, especially during the 17-2 run.

"I just thought, again, war of a transition that way," Golden said. We started wearing them down. We were able to get in transition, get a little confidence, a little momentum. It just seemed like we were able to keep our foot on the gas that way for the 12 minutes to start of half. 20-point lead with seven minutes to go.

"Again, collective. Different guys made plays. I thought our bigs put pressure on the offensive glass. Our guards did a great job getting in the paint, making the right play, making big shots. Playing high-level basketball."

Alabama has made it very clear throughout the season that it can hang with and beat some of the best teams in the country and its No. 5 rank in the AP Top 25 reflects that. But Florida appears to be the Crimson Tide's kryptonite.