What is Alabama Basketball's Most Intriguing SEC Matchup? Just a Minute

Watch the above video as BamaCentral staff writer Hunter De Siver discusses Alabama basketball's road matchup at Florida.

Alabama men's basketball revealed on Wednesday which SEC opponents it will host and travel to this upcoming season. The dates for these SEC matchups are yet to be announced as the non-conference schedule is still being finalized.

The Crimson Tide will face Auburn, Mississippi State and Tennessee both at home and on the road while every other conference foe will either be a home or an away game for Alabama. And with that in mind, although head coach Nate Oats and company will only meet Florida once, an argument could be made that this road battle is the most intriguing of the Tide's SEC slate.

The conference sent a record 14 teams to the 2025 NCAA Tournament and in addition to earning a 1-seed after winning the SEC Tournament a few weeks before, the Gators took home the National Championship as well.

Alabama made it very clear throughout the last two seasons that it could hang with and beat some of the best teams in the country and being the only school in the country to advance to back-to-back Elite Eights reflects that. However, there is no doubt that Florida has been the Crimson Tide's kryptonite over the last two years.

Alabama has lost its last four matchups against Florida. Here is the Gators' point total for each game: 105, 102, 99 and 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, but not Florida and head coach Todd Golden.

So, what makes this matchup intriguing? Well, Florida lost its three highest scorers due to exhausted eligibility/the NBA Draft, including Consensus First Team All-American and NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player Walter Clayton Jr. However, four Alabama starters exhausted their eligibility, including fellow Consensus First Team All-American Mark Sears.

The numbers are the same for outgoing and incoming transfers as the Gators lost three players but also gained three while the Tide lost four but also gained another four. Additionally, both teams had four players return from last year's team, most notably forward Alex Condon for Florida and guard Labaron Philon for Alabama.

Next season's matchup in Gainesville, Fla. will look a lot different than the past two years. While this will be the case for practically every game on Alabama's SEC slate, taking down the defending national champion on the road after not defeating them in two full years would be a big accomplishment for Oats and the Tide.

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