Southeastern foes will clash when the Florida Gators (17-10) play the Vanderbilt Commodores (16-11) at Stephen C. O’Connell Center. Action begins at 7:00 pm ET on Tuesday, Feb. 23 and can be seen on SEC and ES3.
The Gators are hoping to rebound after their 73-69 loss to South Carolina on Saturday. Devin Robinson played well for the Gators, finishing with 17 points, eight rebounds, and three blocks. The Commodores are coming off an 80-67 win over Georgia on Saturday. Damian Jones claimed his seventh double-double of the season with 15 points and 16 rebounds.
Wade Baldwin IV has been hot for the Commodores, averaging 14.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 7.8 assists, 1.4 steals, and 1.4 three-pointers over the past five games.
The top-notch Vanderbilt defense appears to have an advantage when it comes to eFG%. It ranks third in the nation in making teams miss (opponents’ eFG% of 42.3%), whereas the cold-shooting offense of Florida is 273rd with a mark of 47.8%.
This is the second game of the season between these two teams, with the Commodores winning the first matchup 60-59. Baldwin IV had a stellar game with 24 points, two rebounds, four assists, one steal, and one three-pointer.
The Gators have gone 17-10 Straight Up (SU) and 14-11-1 Against The Spread (ATS). Expect to see a lot of second-chance opportunities for Florida in this matchup, which is one of the top rebounding teams in the nation with an average of 13.6 offensive boards per game.
On the other side, Vanderbilt has a SU record of 16-11 and an ATS record of 12-13. The Commodores are shooting very well so far with a .388 three-point field goal percentage that ranks 25th in Division I. Vanderbilt’s defense is one of the top in the nation, with opponents shooting only .380 from the field. Blocking shots is an area where Vanderbilt has excelled. The Commodores average 5.4 blocks per game, making them one of the best in the nation.
Following the Commodores’ latest win over Florida, Vanderbilt is still behind in the head-to-head record over their most recent meetings, 3-7 SU. The teams are even ATS, with a 5-5 record. When it comes to field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers, Florida held the edge in all three of these categories once in the last five meetings. Vanderbilt never did so in those games.
Predictions: SU Winner – Fla, ATS Winner – Fla
Notes
Florida scores an average of just 72.9 points per game (ranked 150th). Vanderbilt ranks 57th in points allowed, giving up 66.9 points per game.
Florida averages 79.1 points per home game (ranked 100th). Vanderbilt allows 72.4 points per away game (ranked 90th).
The Vanderbilt Commodores have a defensive rating of 96.2 (ranked 37th), while the Florida Gators have an offensive rating of 105.8 (ranked 182nd).
With 68.9 possessions and 1.058 points per possession, the Florida Gators perform worse on both metrics than the Vanderbilt Commodores. Vanderbilt averages 69.8 possessions and 1.102 points per possession.
Florida has an average effective field goal percentage of 47.8%. Vanderbilt is an underachieving 3-5 when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage.
On average, the Florida Gators attempt 22.0 three point field goals per game and the Vanderbilt Commodores attempt 21.0. In games where they attempt at least 20 threes, Florida has a solid 13-7 record, while Vanderbilt is 9-8.
Vanderbilt ranks 67th in the nation with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.25. Florida is ranked lower at 145th with an A/TO of 1.11.
Florida, the 18th-ranked team in rebounding, registers an average of 40.9 rebounds per game. Vanderbilt ranks 60th with 38.9.
Vanderbilt ranks 285th in offensive rebounds, while Florida ranks at 57th in defensive rebounds.
Florida has forced an average turnover percentage of 19.1% this season. Vanderbilt has a losing 2-5 record when its TO% is 19.1% or higher.
