Florida Gators & Florida State Seminoles Renew Hardwood Rivalry Today

Sports News - November 24th, 2009 - Written by Jimmy

Before the Seminoles and Gators hook it up on the gridiron on Saturday, they will first meet on the hardwood to settle their annual basketball rivalry tonight at 7pm.

Almost every fan of NCAA sports knows the rivalry between the Florida State Seminoles and the University of Florida Gators on the football field, but the same passion displayed on the basketball court goes without notice.

Fans will have a chance to see two good, up and coming teams, only separated by 152 miles, go head to head for bragging rights. This game should be intense as both teams need to add this win to their tournament resumes.

Both Florida, and Florida State come into this game undefeated, sitting at 3-0, however neither team has yet to gain a top 25 ranking. Florida State currently sits at 27th and Florida is 34th in the latest AP Poll.

To this point, both teams have played a weaker schedule with the University of Stetson being the only common opponent. Florida beat Stetson 74 to 46 on November 15th, while Florida State beat Stetson 80 to 38 on November 18th.

Stats often tell the tale of the game, and currently, FSU holds the advantage. The Florida State offense has been averaging 85.3 ppg while the defense is only allowing an average of 49.7 ppg. On the opposite side of the ball, Florida averages 74.3 ppg on offense while allowing 51.0 ppg on defense. Advantage: FSU

Looking at the statistical averages, the match up appears to favor Florida State. However, looking at the College Basketball Betting Lines, the oddsmakers favor Florida over Florida State.

At several online sportsbooks, including DSI Sportsbook, the Seminoles are coming into this game as 4 point underdogs. Florida State has yet to have betting lines on their games, making them 0-0 against the spread, however Florida has had 2 lined games, placing them at 1-1 in the College Basketball ATS Standings.

To this point in the season, Florida has been mainly led by their starting lineup. 4 of the 5 average double digit points, led by G Kenny Boynton at 19 ppg and F Chandler Parsons at 14.7 ppg. The Gators have yet to go deep into their bench, something that will surely be tested tonight.

As for the Seminoles, they have rotated players generously in the 3 games leading up to this one. FSU is led by G Deividas Dulkys with 12.7 ppg, C Solomon Alabi with 12.3 ppg, and F/C Xavier Gibson at 11.7 ppg. Florida State regularly plays 10 different players in a single game.

Despite the success Florida has had recently with winning National Titles, FSU has gotten the better end of the deal in the head to head matchup.

2008: FSU 57 - UF 55
2007: FSU 65 - UF 51
2006: FSU 70 - UF 66
2005: UF 74 - FSU 66
2004: FSU 82 - UF 69

As seen above, FSU has gotten the edge against Florida in 4 out of the last 5 games.

Tip off is scheduled for shortly after 7pm ET from the Stephen C. O'Connell Center in Gainesville, Florida. Coverage of the game can be seen on ESPN Full Court, ESPN360, as well as Fox Sports South, SUN, and NESN.

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