After a surprising first conference loss, the second-ranked Florida Gators host the Mississippi State Bulldogs for an SEC Basketball tilt at 5 pm EST on ESPN3. Duke is currently the only team in the top five that won its most recent game, with Florida looking to buck that trend with its first of two home games.
The ESPN3 broadcast will be blacked out in the southeast and in Texas. The Gator Vision presentation of the game is right here (subscription required). Mississippi State's live stream can be heard here.
The Gators had won the previous ten games before the last defeat, starting the SEC in-conference schedule with eight victories. Florida has just one more game left against a ranked team, which is a February 19 contest with Missouri.
Kenny Boynton averages more points than anyone else on the team (13.2 ppg). Patric Young is the leading rebounder (6.6 rpg) and at five helpers per game, Scottie ilbekin has more per game than anyone else. Young is the most efficient shooter (.627), and Erik Murphy is the best behind the three-point line (489).
The Razorbacks outshot the Gators in every aspect in the 80-69 win for the unranked team. Arkansas also had more assists and steals in the upset.
The Bulldogs have lost seven games in a row. In that span, only two games were single-digit differences, one in overtime, and the other a one-point defeat. Mississippi State is tied for 12th among the 14 teams, and no one has a worse conference record than (2-7).
Fred Thomas is the only Bulldog averaging double-digit points per game (10.6). Gavin Ware lead the way with 6.8 rebounds per game and Trivante Bloodman's 2.8 assists per contest is highest on the team. Wendell Lewis is the team's leading shooter with a .568 field goal percentage. Tyson Cunningham is the biggest threat for a three-pointer, with a .462 mark so far this season.
Mississippi State put up 75 points in its late game, but was upended by the Ole Miss Rebels 93-75. Craig Sword (17), Jalen Steele (15) and Thomas (13) each had double-digit points and four players had a handful or rebounds or more. The Rebels blocked eight Bulldogs shots.
Then-eighth-ranked Florida wrecked the Bulldogs 82-47 in the last match-up on January 26. Mississippi State was held to 19 points in the first half. Thomas had 19 points and seven steals, and Sword added five steals and eight points for the home team. A pair of Gators had eight rebounds, four scored 13 points or more and Wilbekin added nine assists for the victors. The highlights from that game are right here.