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No. 8 Florida’s defense stymies Alabama down the stretch

Erik Murphy, Rodney Cooper

Florida’s Erik Murphy (33) tries to get the ball to the basket as he is blocked by Alabama guard Rodney Cooper (21) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in Gainesville, Fla., Saturday, March 2, 2013. (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

AP

Alabama had just gone on a 19-6 run, stymieing No. 8 Florida’s offensive attack while finding a way to get out and score in transition. With 12 minutes left in the second half, a Trevor Releford layup put the Crimson Tide up 45-37. They were rolling.

And they wouldn’t get another good look at the basket the rest of the game.

Alabama was outscored 27-7 over the final 12 minutes, winning 64-52 as Billy Donovan’s defense looked every bit as legitimate as the hype their current Kenpom defensive efficiency rating gives stat-heads. They forced turnovers. They bumped cuts. They kept Nick Jacobs from getting position and cut off Releford’s driving lanes and gave Trevor Lacey and the rest of the Tide perimeter players a split second of space.

It’s no coincidence that this kind of performance comes after Will Yeguete, Michael Frazier and Casey PRather make their resturn to the lineup.

The bottom-line is that Florida is never going to be a good team in the half court. They don’t have great one-on-one players, they have guards that enjoy firing away from three too much, and their best post player doesn’t have all that much of a post game.

But that doesn’t matter when their opponent cannot score.

That was the difference today. That’s why, for the first time this season, Florida won a game that wasn’t a blow-out.

Today was the first time since the first minute of Florida’s loss at Arkansas that the Gators have been at full-strength. And while it took they 28 minutes to wake up, when they did, you got a peak at why many believed Florida to be the best team in the country a month ago.

You can find Rob on twitter @RobDauster.