Three Things to Watch For in Alabama's Home Matchup Against Florida

Storylines and game info for the Crimson Tide's 17th SEC game in 2025 against the Gators.

Feb 21, 2024; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide guard Mark Sears (1) reacts after making a three pointer during the second half against the Florida Gators at Coleman Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Butch Dill-Imagn Images | Butch Dill-Imagn Images

TUSCALOOSA, Ala.— Alabama's recent momentum was turned down a couple of pegs this past Saturday as then-No. 5 Tennessee defeated the then-No. 6 Crimson Tide on a buzzer-beating shot from the logo.

The Crimson Tide will have another tremendous challenge against new-No. 5 Florida at home in Coleman Coliseum on March 5 in an extremely high-stakes penultimate game of the regular season.

Here are three things to watch for in Coleman Coliseum and on ESPN2:

1. Mark Sears Aims for 80

Wednesday's game will be the last time five members of the Crimson Tide play in Coleman Coliseum as the team celebrates Senior Night. The ceremony will be held after the game.

One player being honored tonight is guard Mark Sears, who currently sits as Division I’s active leader in points with 2,706 in his career. The dual-threat is also the only player in the SEC to rank in the top-2 in scoring (No. 2 with 19.1 points per game) and assists (No. 2 with 5.0 per game). But a new goal has been brought up.

“It’s our last home game, Senior Night, it should be a special night, especially for Mark,” Alabama head coach Nate Oats said during Tuesday's press conference. “He’s got 79 wins here at Coleman, hopefully we can get to 80. That sounds a lot better than 79. He’s had a really good career here and he’s playing well.”

2. The No. 2 Seed

After losing back-to-back games, Alabama basketball responded strongly with victories over then-No. 17 Kentucky and then-No. 24 Mississippi State in the last few days. But as previously stated, the Tide went in the wrong direction in the loss to Tennessee.

Alabama's win over Mississippi State on Feb. 25 helped it overtake the second-place spot in the SEC following Florida's loss to Georgia. However, while the Tide lost last Saturday, the Gators dominated No. 12 Texas A&M, meaning Florida regained its previous status.

Both Alabama and Florida are now each 12-4 in SEC play but the Gators have the tiebreaker due to a slightly better non-conference record. But if Alabama wins tonight, it'll be the No. 2 team in the SEC once again heading into the final game of the season on the road against No. 1 Auburn.

3. Offense Will be Key

Alabama leads the nation in points per game with 91.0. Many of the Crimson Tide's close wins have resulted in its offense being the more potent one, but it'll need to hold that status once again tonight against Florida.

The Gators are 10th in the country in scoring offense with 83.8 points per game. The goal of taking complete control of the two-seed for the SEC Tournament will be as big a chip on its shoulder as Alabama's.

Guard Walter Clayton Jr. leads Florida offensively with 16.9 points per game on 43.9 percent from the field and 36.3 percent from deep, but guards Alijah Martin (14.7 points) and Will Richard (13.6) and forward Alex Condon (10.5) aren't too far behind and are also big parts of the Gators scoring output.