Gators Pro Day Set for March 27. Eighteen draft-eligible Gators will have the opportunity to showcase their abilities in front of NFL personnel.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The Gators football program will hold this year's Pro Day on Thursday, March 27, it was announced Wednesday.
A total of 18 draft-eligible Gators from the 2024 roster will have the opportunity to showcase their abilities in front of NFL general managers, coaches and scouts.
Fans can tune in to FloridaGators.com and the @GatorsFB social media platforms for updates from this year’s Pro Day and coverage of UF's NFL prospects as the draft approaches. Pro Day will not be open to the public.
Pro Day events will include weight room weigh-ins, bench press, vertical jump, broad jump as well as the 40-yard dash, 60-yard shuttle and position workouts.
Gators Expected to Participate in Pro Day:
Elijhah Badger
Trikweze Bridges
Cam Carroll
Jeremy Crawshaw
Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson
Chimere Dike
DJ Douglas
Ja’Quavion Fraziars
Cam Jackson
Shemar James
Montrell Johnson Jr.
Jason Marshall Jr.
Graham Mertz
R.J. Moten
Joey Slackman
Desmond Watson
Ja’Markis Weston
Derek Wingo
After 12-straight sold-out games at The Swamp, fans can now secure season tickets for six games in 2025 with matchups against LIU (Aug. 30), South Florida (Sept. 6), Texas (Oct. 4), Mississippi State (Oct. 18), Tennessee (Nov. 22) and Florida State (Nov. 29).
No. 7 Florida Falls on Road at UCF. The Gators dropped their first midweek game to move to 11-2 on the season.
ORLANDO, Fla. – No. 7 Florida lost its first midweek contest of the season, dropping a 13-3 decision to UCF at John Euliano Park on Tuesday night.
Despite a leadoff single from Hayden Yost in the opening frame, the Gators (11-2) came up empty in the first. The Knights (9-3) wasted no time opening the scoring in the home half, as Andrew Williamson hit a two-run homer to left to open a 2-0 lead.
Florida got both runs right back in the top of the second, tying the game at 2-2. Brody Donay started it off with a single to right, then advanced on a Landon Stripling walk. From there, Luke Heyman and Blake Cyr produced RBI singles to left and center, respectively, to plate a pair of runs.
Gators starting hurler Matthew Jenkins rebounded for zeros in the second and third while registering his first three strikeouts. The score held until the home half of the fourth, when Lex Boedicker tripled to left-center and came home on a single to center from Braden Calise to make it 3-2.
In the top of the fifth, Florida nearly knotted it back up. After Bobby Boser reached on a two-out throwing error at shortstop, Colby Shelton doubled into the left-field corner, but the former was thrown out at home attempting to score the tying run on the play.
UCF grabbed momentum from the out at home, as Edian Espinal blasted a three-run shot to right to give the Knights a 6-2 advantage after five frames. The Knights tacked on four more in the sixth, using a bases-loaded walk by Dylan King and two-run single off the bat of DeAmez for the first three runs. Espinal then doubled home King for a 10-2 Knights lead through six.
Following a scoreless seventh, UCF added a trio of late runs in the eighth to bring the score to 13-2. Ross singled home Antonio Jimenez while King was plated on a 6-3 double play hit by Espinal. Boedicker drove in the Knights’ final run with a single through the right side.
The Gators showed life in the ninth, cutting the final tally to 13-3. Leading off the inning, Brendan Lawson launched an opposite-field homer down the left-field line for his third of the season.
Knights reliever Dominic Castellano (2-0) registered the victory after firing 3 2/3 shutout frames. He finished with one hit allowed, two walks and three strikeouts.
UF starter Matthew Jenkins (0-1) received the loss. He threw a career-high 3 1/3 innings with three runs allowed (two earned) on two hits and one walk. The right-hander struck out four.
UCF starting hurler Angelo Smith did not factor into the decision, lasting 1 1/3 frames and allowing two earned runs on four hits and one walk. He fanned one batter.
NOTABLES
* Making his first-career start, Jenkins logged a career-high 3 1/3 innings and struck out four.
* Lawson went 2-for-3 and connected for his third homer of the campaign.
* Florida has launched a homer in all 13 games.
* The Gators have already stolen 30 bases this season, equating to 70% of their 2024 total (43).
* Florida pitchers have produced a 156-to-38 strikeout-to-walk ratio through 13 games.
* Florida leads the all-time series against UCF, 28-22, and is 8-8 in Orlando after tonight.
* The Gators are 11-9 overall and 3-5 on the road in the series under Head Coach Kevin O’Sullivan.
* Tuesday’s official attendance was 4,204, marking the second-largest crowd in the history of John Euliano Park.
FROM HEAD COACH KEVIN O'SULLIVAN
On his thoughts on the game…
“Yeah, I thought Matt [Jenkins] threw the ball good. I thought Christian [Rodriguez] threw the ball good, but the middle innings got us with Luke [McNeillie] and Niko [Janssens]. You know, we didn’t swing the bat particularly well tonight either, so… everybody kind of had a hand in this one.”
On changing up the defensive alignment…
“Well, there’s reasons why we did that. We had to play Brody at first tonight because Luke’s hand was bothering him a little bit from the weekend. So obviously, if we’re DHing him and something happens to Luke, then we lose the DH. And then Nadeau’s groin was bothering him a little bit tonight, so we couldn’t play him at second, so we were forced to make some more moves. So, the moves certainly were not just to make moves. They kind of forced our hand a little bit.”
On the message to the team…
“We just got to play better, simple as that. In all phases. We got another good opponent coming in tomorrow and FAU has gotten off to a good start. So we’re just going to have to play better in all phases.”
UP NEXT
The Gators return home to host Florida Atlantic on Wednesday night at 6 p.m. on SEC Network+.
#5 Florida Men's Basketball (25-4, 12-4 SEC) vs. #7/8 Alabama (23-6, 12-4 SEC)
Coleman Coliseum | Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Wednesday, March 5, 2025 | 7 p.m. EST
TV/Streaming
ESPN2 | ESPN App
Play-by-Play: Dave Pasch | Analyst: Jay Bilas | Reporter: Molly McGrath
Radio
Gators Sports Network from LEARFIELD | SiriusXM Channel 1062/191 & SiriusXM App
Play-by-Play: Sean Kelley | Analyst: Lee Humphrey | Producer/Engineer: Steve Egan
The Tip-Off
* Florida and Alabama meet again after playing three memorable games in a 23-day span last season as the Gators took two of three from the Tide, eclipsing 100 points in wins at home and at the SEC Tournament after falling in overtime at Tuscaloosa.
* Florida has recorded 25 regular season wins for the third time in program history, also reaching that milestone in 2013-14 (29) and 2006-07 (26). This is the 12th time UF has recorded 25+ total wins.
* Florida played five top-10 matchups vs. an SEC opponent in program history prior to this season. Wednesday will mark the Gators' fifth top-10 showdown in SEC action this season.
* Florida owns four top-25 wins this season, matching last season's total and the team's second-most over the past decade (six, 2017-18). Two of those four have come on the road: at #1 Auburn, at #22 Mississippi State.
* This marks the second meeting in series history with both teams ranked in the top 10, previously occurring on Feb. 23, 2002, as the #8 Gators lost a 65-64 road meeting at fifth-ranked Alabama. Antoine Pettway's layup at the buzzer helped Alabama overcome an 18-point outing by Matt Bonner.
* Walter Clayton Jr. is having a two-season run that ranks among the all-time best in Florida history. He is the seventh player in program history to score 1,100 points over two seasons and the sixth to hit 170 3-pointers over two seasons (see page 9). Clayton has also made a 3-pointer in a UF-record 51 consecutive appearances.
* Will Richard enters Wednesday's game off 25 points in the win vs. #12 Texas A&M and a career-high 30 points at Georgia. He is the fourth Gator over the last 30 years to post consecutive 25-point games in SEC action, joining Colin Castleton, Anthony Roberson and Jason Williams. Richard is the fifth Gator in that time with five or more 3-pointers in consecutive SEC games, along with Roberson, Noah Locke, Brett Nelson and Kenyan Weaks.
2024-25 Highlights at a Glance
* Florida picked up its fourth top-25 win of the season with an 89-70 victory vs. #12 Texas A&M, as Will Richard's 25 points led five Gators in double figures. UF outscored the Aggies 24-11 over the final eight minutes.
* The Gators set a program record with five straight games with five players scoring in double figures from Feb. 8-22. Denzel Aberdeen, Rueben Chinyelu, Thomas Haugh and Urban Klavzar all had career-high scoring performances during that stretch.
* UF won at Mississippi State to earn ranked road wins in back-to-back games for the first time in program history. Already without Alijah Martin, Florida lost Alex Condon to injury 30 seconds into the contest, and Florida's super-subs responded. Denzel Aberdeen poured in 20 points, while Thomas Haugh stuffed the box score with 16 points, nine rebounds, a career-best eight assists, two blocked shots and two steals.
* Florida earned its first all-time road win at a #1 team at Auburn, as Walter Clayton Jr.'s 19 points led five Gators in double figures. Alex Condon had 17 points and 10 rebounds, while Thomas Haugh scored 16 off the bench. The Gators became the fifth team all-time to post wins vs. two different #1 teams in a season.
* Denzel Aberdeen (22 points) and Thomas Haugh (20 points) went for career highs in the win vs. South Carolina.
* Will Richard's driving layup with 4.8 seconds left at South Carolina gave Florida its winning margin, as well as its first lead of the game to cap off a rally from 14 points down with 12 minutes to play.
* Florida earned its third all-time win vs. #1 and first in a regular season game with a 73-43 rout of top-ranked Tennessee. The Gators allowed just 12 field goals, the fewest by a #1 team in the shot clock era. Alijah Martin led Florida with 18 points, Denzel Aberdeen added 16, and Alex Condon posted a double-double (12/12).
* Florida posted a 13-0 nonconference record, which marked the Gators' second-best in program history (17-0, 2005-06) and included a 4-0 record against ACC opponents.
Florida to Face Auburn in Opening Round of SEC Tournament. Florida's first game of its 2025 postseason campaign will be against the Auburn Tigers on Wednesday night. UF will take on the Tigers at 8:30 p.m. inside the Bon Secours Wellness Arena with live coverage on SECN.
GREENVILLE, S.C.- The Gators will face Auburn in game four of the first round of the 2025 SEC Tournament on Wednesday night. Tip-off is set for 8:30 p.m. ET inside Bon Secours Wellness Arena.
The Gators enter the 2025 SEC Tournament as the No. 11 seed, while Auburn sits at No. 14. The game will be aired on SECN.
Auburn (12-17, 3-13 SEC)
* Date: Wed., Mar. 5
* Time: 8:30 p.m. ET
* Radio: ESPN Gainesville 98.1 FM / 850 AM
* Watch: SECN
A FLORIDA WIN WOULD:
* Be UF's first win over Auburn in postseason play since 2021
* Tally their first victory in neutral territory of the season
* Give the Gators an SEC Tournament win for the second straight season
* Put Florida's SEC record at 6-11
* Set Florida's all-time SEC record to 232-336
* Record Coach Finley's 26th SEC win as Florida's head coach
* Make UF's record 4-5 in the month of Feb., 2025
* Break Florida's current three game losing streak
* Mark UF's third SEC post-season win in the past two years
Four Gators Earn All-SEC Nods for Performances at SEC Championship Meet. Multiple distance and mid-distance athletes excelled at the SEC Indoor Track and Field Championships.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The Southeastern Conference has announced selections for first-team, second-team, and third-team All-SEC honors for the Indoor Track and Field Season.
Tia Wilson (first-team), Hilda Olemomoi (second-team), Jessica Edwards (third-team) and Gabrielle Matthews (third-team) each earned all-conference nods for their respective finishes in their events at the SEC Indoor Track and Field Championships which concluded this weekend in College Station, Texas.
Tia Wilson, the SEC Champion in the indoor mile, takes home a first-team nod from what was her first-career conference championship meet. The native of Bedford, England put together arguably the finest race of her career on day three of the meet, posting a 4:30.10 performance in the mile, a personal record by over six seconds.
Olemomoi finished with a silver medal in the 3000m, running to an 8:57.50 pace. Her second-team selection is the eighth All-SEC honor of her career, counting Cross Country, Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field seasons. This is her second selection as a member of the Orange and Blue
Edwards and Matthews claimed their third-team honors by running the second and third legs of Florida's bronze-winning Distance Medley Relay team. The two were flanked by Wilson and Olemomoi, who ran the 1200m and 1600m legs respectively. Matthews took the handoff from Wilson and delivered a 52.33-second 400m split, and Edwards posted a 2:06.42 800m split before delivering the stick to Olemomoi. Both of those splits were the third-fastest in the field for their respective legs.
The honor is Matthews' second career All-SEC selection and Edwards' first.
No. 3 Gators Travel to Houston for Midweek Tilt. The matchup will be the first time Florida and Houston have met since 2006.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The No. 3 Florida softball team is hitting the road for four games in the state of Texas, starting with a midweek matchup at Houston on Wednesday.
First pitch is set for 7 p.m. ET on ESPN+ from Cougar Softball Stadium.
The Gators (23-1) are coming off a 5-0 week at home, recording victories over FCGU, Florida A&M, Troy, Western Michigan and Samford.
During those five games, Florida outscored its opponents 47-7 and slugged 10 home runs, while allowing just one.
Houston (14-5)
UF’s Strong Finish Ties for Low Round in T5 Outing at Southern Highlands. Florida shot a 7-under round three with five Gators placing par or better today as Jack Turner finished 8th.
LAS VEGAS - The No. 11/10 Florida men's golf team finished strong at the Southern Highlands Collegiate, tying for a tournament-low 7-under final round for a T5 outing on Tuesday.
After shooting +19 in the opening windy round and +7 in the second, Florida continued to improve each round with five out of six Gators shooting par or better today. The team round of 7-under was tied for the lowest with No. 2 Auburn, who won the tournament at 9-under.
Three Gators finished in the top-21 led by Jack Turner with an 8th place performance for his team-high fifth top-10. He fired a final round of 4-under 68, which after a bogey on his third hole, he finished bogey-free with five birdies. The sophomore recorded his 10th career top-10 in his 15th collegiate stroke play event while marking his team-high 11th par or better round this season.
Only a shot behind at 2-over for the week, was Matthew Kress (individual). He carded his second consecutive round of 2-under 70 en route to a T9 finish. In his last two starts, Kress has finished T6 & T9 with four rounds of par or better.
Freshman Zack Swanwick also had a final round of 2-under 70 to total 5-over in his fourth start in the lineup. He finished T21 and logged four birdies in his final set of 18-holes, highlighted by a bogey-free 3-under front nine.
In back-to-back starts in the lineup, redshirt-freshman Rylan Shim notched his low round at Southern Highlands Golf Club with a 1-under 71 this afternoon to finish T63 at +13.
Luke Poulter (+7, T30) and Ian Gilligan (+8, T34) both ended within a shot of one another in round three and overall. Gilligan had an even-par 72 as Poulter had a 1-over 73, who closed out his 54-holes with an eagle on the par5 (592 yards) 9th.
Two more regular-season tournaments remain with the Schenkel Invitational (March 21-23) and Calusa Cup (April 6-8).
Fourteen Gators Qualify for NCAA Women’s Championships. Florida’s 14 combine for 32 individual events.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Fourteen swimmers from the fifth-ranked Florida women’s swimming and diving team qualified for the 2025 NCAA Division I Women’s Swimming & Diving Championships, the organization announced Wednesday.
The four-day competition will be held at the Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way, Washington from March 19-22 and will be hosted by Washington State University.
Anita Bottazzo, Julie Brousseau, Catie Choate, Zoe Dixon, Lainy Kruger, Michaela Mattes, Molly Mayne, Olivia Peoples, Sofia Plaza, JoJo Ramey, Bella Sims, Emma Weyant and Mabel Zavaros are the 14 swimmers that will represent Florida in 32 different events at this year’s championships. Swimmers qualified for the championships by meeting the established minimum time for the events they entered.
Divers will be determined by performances at the Zone Diving Championships, held March 9-12 in Auburn, Ala. Selected divers will be announced on Thursday, March 13, with the men’s selections announced the day prior on Wednesday, March 12.
The Gators also qualified five relays, with the 200 free relay, 400 free relay, 800 free relay, 200 medley relay, 400 medley relay all hitting the qualifying standard. Relay lineups will be determined before the championships.
Florida’s 14 swimmers are the third-most by any school to qualify for this year’s championships, sitting only behind Texas’ 15 swimmers and the 18 individuals from four-time national champions, Virginia.
Eight of the 14 Gators were part of the program’s best finish in 14 years at last year’s 2024 NCAA Championships. The women placed third, totaling 34 All-American Honors en route to three national titles and four runner-up’s.
Bella Sims was crowned the 500 free and 200 free national champion, while earning All-American Honors in her seven events. In addition, four of Florida's five relay teams merited top-five finishes, as the 800 Free Relay team of Sims, Isabel Ivey, Emma Weyant and Micayla Cronk won the program's first National Title in the event since 1989.
Overall, nine swimmers have NCAA Championship experience: Catie Choate, Zoe Dixon, Lainy Kruger, Molly Mayne, JoJo Ramey, Olivia Peoples, Bella Sims, Emma Weyant and Mabel Zavaros. The remaining five are making their first NCAA Championships appearance: Anita Bottazzo, Julie Brousseau, Michaela Mattes, Sofia Plaza and Addison Reese.
A total of 322 participants (281 swimmers and 41 divers) will compete in the championships. Swimmers qualified for the championships by meeting the established minimum time for the events in which they entered. Divers will be determined by performances achieved at the Zone Diving Championships held March 9-15.
ESPN+ will provide live digital coverage for preliminary and finals sessions Wednesday through Saturday. Tape-delayed coverage of the women’s championships will be on ESPNU at 7 p.m. Eastern time, Wednesday, March 26.
Name
Event
Entry Time
Anita Bottazzo
200 Breaststroke
2:08.66
100 Breaststroke
57.49
Julie Brousseau
500 Freestyle
4:34.59
1650 Freestyle
16:00.47
400 IM
4:04.21
Catie Choate
200 Backstroke
1:51.78
100 Backstroke
51.54
Zoe Dixon
400 IM
4:03.99
200 IM
1:54.57
200 Backstroke
1:52.08
Lainy Kruger
200 IM
1:54.08
200 Butterfly
1:55.08
200 Freestyle
1:43.90
Michaela Mattes
500 Freestyle
4:37.95
1650 Freestyle
15:59.38
400 IM
4:08.01
Molly Mayne
200 Breaststroke
2:08.50
100 Breaststroke
58.89
Olivia Peoples
100 Butterfly
50.96
Sofia Plaza
400 IM
4:07.23
JoJo Ramey
200 Backstroke
1:52.33
200 Freestyle
1:44.57
Addison Reese
200 Butterfly
1:55.03
Bella Sims
200 Backstroke
1:48.28
100 Backstroke
48.97
500 Freestyle
4:31.06
Emma Weyant
500 Freestyle
4:35.58
1650 Freestyle
15:53.23
400 IM
3:59.24
Mabel Zavaros
200 Backstroke
1:52.24
400 IM
4:03.93
500 Freestyle
4:38.98
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The Gators football program will hold this year's Pro Day on Thursday, March 27, it was announced Wednesday.
A total of 18 draft-eligible Gators from the 2024 roster will have the opportunity to showcase their abilities in front of NFL general managers, coaches and scouts.
Fans can tune in to FloridaGators.com and the @GatorsFB social media platforms for updates from this year’s Pro Day and coverage of UF's NFL prospects as the draft approaches. Pro Day will not be open to the public.
Pro Day events will include weight room weigh-ins, bench press, vertical jump, broad jump as well as the 40-yard dash, 60-yard shuttle and position workouts.
Gators Expected to Participate in Pro Day:
Elijhah Badger
Trikweze Bridges
Cam Carroll
Jeremy Crawshaw
Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson
Chimere Dike
DJ Douglas
Ja’Quavion Fraziars
Cam Jackson
Shemar James
Montrell Johnson Jr.
Jason Marshall Jr.
Graham Mertz
R.J. Moten
Joey Slackman
Desmond Watson
Ja’Markis Weston
Derek Wingo
After 12-straight sold-out games at The Swamp, fans can now secure season tickets for six games in 2025 with matchups against LIU (Aug. 30), South Florida (Sept. 6), Texas (Oct. 4), Mississippi State (Oct. 18), Tennessee (Nov. 22) and Florida State (Nov. 29).
No. 7 Florida Falls on Road at UCF. The Gators dropped their first midweek game to move to 11-2 on the season.
ORLANDO, Fla. – No. 7 Florida lost its first midweek contest of the season, dropping a 13-3 decision to UCF at John Euliano Park on Tuesday night.
Despite a leadoff single from Hayden Yost in the opening frame, the Gators (11-2) came up empty in the first. The Knights (9-3) wasted no time opening the scoring in the home half, as Andrew Williamson hit a two-run homer to left to open a 2-0 lead.
Florida got both runs right back in the top of the second, tying the game at 2-2. Brody Donay started it off with a single to right, then advanced on a Landon Stripling walk. From there, Luke Heyman and Blake Cyr produced RBI singles to left and center, respectively, to plate a pair of runs.
Gators starting hurler Matthew Jenkins rebounded for zeros in the second and third while registering his first three strikeouts. The score held until the home half of the fourth, when Lex Boedicker tripled to left-center and came home on a single to center from Braden Calise to make it 3-2.
In the top of the fifth, Florida nearly knotted it back up. After Bobby Boser reached on a two-out throwing error at shortstop, Colby Shelton doubled into the left-field corner, but the former was thrown out at home attempting to score the tying run on the play.
UCF grabbed momentum from the out at home, as Edian Espinal blasted a three-run shot to right to give the Knights a 6-2 advantage after five frames. The Knights tacked on four more in the sixth, using a bases-loaded walk by Dylan King and two-run single off the bat of DeAmez for the first three runs. Espinal then doubled home King for a 10-2 Knights lead through six.
Following a scoreless seventh, UCF added a trio of late runs in the eighth to bring the score to 13-2. Ross singled home Antonio Jimenez while King was plated on a 6-3 double play hit by Espinal. Boedicker drove in the Knights’ final run with a single through the right side.
The Gators showed life in the ninth, cutting the final tally to 13-3. Leading off the inning, Brendan Lawson launched an opposite-field homer down the left-field line for his third of the season.
Knights reliever Dominic Castellano (2-0) registered the victory after firing 3 2/3 shutout frames. He finished with one hit allowed, two walks and three strikeouts.
UF starter Matthew Jenkins (0-1) received the loss. He threw a career-high 3 1/3 innings with three runs allowed (two earned) on two hits and one walk. The right-hander struck out four.
UCF starting hurler Angelo Smith did not factor into the decision, lasting 1 1/3 frames and allowing two earned runs on four hits and one walk. He fanned one batter.
NOTABLES
* Making his first-career start, Jenkins logged a career-high 3 1/3 innings and struck out four.
* Lawson went 2-for-3 and connected for his third homer of the campaign.
* Florida has launched a homer in all 13 games.
* The Gators have already stolen 30 bases this season, equating to 70% of their 2024 total (43).
* Florida pitchers have produced a 156-to-38 strikeout-to-walk ratio through 13 games.
* Florida leads the all-time series against UCF, 28-22, and is 8-8 in Orlando after tonight.
* The Gators are 11-9 overall and 3-5 on the road in the series under Head Coach Kevin O’Sullivan.
* Tuesday’s official attendance was 4,204, marking the second-largest crowd in the history of John Euliano Park.
FROM HEAD COACH KEVIN O'SULLIVAN
On his thoughts on the game…
“Yeah, I thought Matt [Jenkins] threw the ball good. I thought Christian [Rodriguez] threw the ball good, but the middle innings got us with Luke [McNeillie] and Niko [Janssens]. You know, we didn’t swing the bat particularly well tonight either, so… everybody kind of had a hand in this one.”
On changing up the defensive alignment…
“Well, there’s reasons why we did that. We had to play Brody at first tonight because Luke’s hand was bothering him a little bit from the weekend. So obviously, if we’re DHing him and something happens to Luke, then we lose the DH. And then Nadeau’s groin was bothering him a little bit tonight, so we couldn’t play him at second, so we were forced to make some more moves. So, the moves certainly were not just to make moves. They kind of forced our hand a little bit.”
On the message to the team…
“We just got to play better, simple as that. In all phases. We got another good opponent coming in tomorrow and FAU has gotten off to a good start. So we’re just going to have to play better in all phases.”
UP NEXT
The Gators return home to host Florida Atlantic on Wednesday night at 6 p.m. on SEC Network+.
#5 Florida Men's Basketball (25-4, 12-4 SEC) vs. #7/8 Alabama (23-6, 12-4 SEC)
Coleman Coliseum | Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Wednesday, March 5, 2025 | 7 p.m. EST
TV/Streaming
ESPN2 | ESPN App
Play-by-Play: Dave Pasch | Analyst: Jay Bilas | Reporter: Molly McGrath
Radio
Gators Sports Network from LEARFIELD | SiriusXM Channel 1062/191 & SiriusXM App
Play-by-Play: Sean Kelley | Analyst: Lee Humphrey | Producer/Engineer: Steve Egan
The Tip-Off
* Florida and Alabama meet again after playing three memorable games in a 23-day span last season as the Gators took two of three from the Tide, eclipsing 100 points in wins at home and at the SEC Tournament after falling in overtime at Tuscaloosa.
* Florida has recorded 25 regular season wins for the third time in program history, also reaching that milestone in 2013-14 (29) and 2006-07 (26). This is the 12th time UF has recorded 25+ total wins.
* Florida played five top-10 matchups vs. an SEC opponent in program history prior to this season. Wednesday will mark the Gators' fifth top-10 showdown in SEC action this season.
* Florida owns four top-25 wins this season, matching last season's total and the team's second-most over the past decade (six, 2017-18). Two of those four have come on the road: at #1 Auburn, at #22 Mississippi State.
* This marks the second meeting in series history with both teams ranked in the top 10, previously occurring on Feb. 23, 2002, as the #8 Gators lost a 65-64 road meeting at fifth-ranked Alabama. Antoine Pettway's layup at the buzzer helped Alabama overcome an 18-point outing by Matt Bonner.
* Walter Clayton Jr. is having a two-season run that ranks among the all-time best in Florida history. He is the seventh player in program history to score 1,100 points over two seasons and the sixth to hit 170 3-pointers over two seasons (see page 9). Clayton has also made a 3-pointer in a UF-record 51 consecutive appearances.
* Will Richard enters Wednesday's game off 25 points in the win vs. #12 Texas A&M and a career-high 30 points at Georgia. He is the fourth Gator over the last 30 years to post consecutive 25-point games in SEC action, joining Colin Castleton, Anthony Roberson and Jason Williams. Richard is the fifth Gator in that time with five or more 3-pointers in consecutive SEC games, along with Roberson, Noah Locke, Brett Nelson and Kenyan Weaks.
2024-25 Highlights at a Glance
* Florida picked up its fourth top-25 win of the season with an 89-70 victory vs. #12 Texas A&M, as Will Richard's 25 points led five Gators in double figures. UF outscored the Aggies 24-11 over the final eight minutes.
* The Gators set a program record with five straight games with five players scoring in double figures from Feb. 8-22. Denzel Aberdeen, Rueben Chinyelu, Thomas Haugh and Urban Klavzar all had career-high scoring performances during that stretch.
* UF won at Mississippi State to earn ranked road wins in back-to-back games for the first time in program history. Already without Alijah Martin, Florida lost Alex Condon to injury 30 seconds into the contest, and Florida's super-subs responded. Denzel Aberdeen poured in 20 points, while Thomas Haugh stuffed the box score with 16 points, nine rebounds, a career-best eight assists, two blocked shots and two steals.
* Florida earned its first all-time road win at a #1 team at Auburn, as Walter Clayton Jr.'s 19 points led five Gators in double figures. Alex Condon had 17 points and 10 rebounds, while Thomas Haugh scored 16 off the bench. The Gators became the fifth team all-time to post wins vs. two different #1 teams in a season.
* Denzel Aberdeen (22 points) and Thomas Haugh (20 points) went for career highs in the win vs. South Carolina.
* Will Richard's driving layup with 4.8 seconds left at South Carolina gave Florida its winning margin, as well as its first lead of the game to cap off a rally from 14 points down with 12 minutes to play.
* Florida earned its third all-time win vs. #1 and first in a regular season game with a 73-43 rout of top-ranked Tennessee. The Gators allowed just 12 field goals, the fewest by a #1 team in the shot clock era. Alijah Martin led Florida with 18 points, Denzel Aberdeen added 16, and Alex Condon posted a double-double (12/12).
* Florida posted a 13-0 nonconference record, which marked the Gators' second-best in program history (17-0, 2005-06) and included a 4-0 record against ACC opponents.
Florida to Face Auburn in Opening Round of SEC Tournament. Florida's first game of its 2025 postseason campaign will be against the Auburn Tigers on Wednesday night. UF will take on the Tigers at 8:30 p.m. inside the Bon Secours Wellness Arena with live coverage on SECN.
GREENVILLE, S.C.- The Gators will face Auburn in game four of the first round of the 2025 SEC Tournament on Wednesday night. Tip-off is set for 8:30 p.m. ET inside Bon Secours Wellness Arena.
The Gators enter the 2025 SEC Tournament as the No. 11 seed, while Auburn sits at No. 14. The game will be aired on SECN.
Auburn (12-17, 3-13 SEC)
* Date: Wed., Mar. 5
* Time: 8:30 p.m. ET
* Radio: ESPN Gainesville 98.1 FM / 850 AM
* Watch: SECN
A FLORIDA WIN WOULD:
* Be UF's first win over Auburn in postseason play since 2021
* Tally their first victory in neutral territory of the season
* Give the Gators an SEC Tournament win for the second straight season
* Put Florida's SEC record at 6-11
* Set Florida's all-time SEC record to 232-336
* Record Coach Finley's 26th SEC win as Florida's head coach
* Make UF's record 4-5 in the month of Feb., 2025
* Break Florida's current three game losing streak
* Mark UF's third SEC post-season win in the past two years
Four Gators Earn All-SEC Nods for Performances at SEC Championship Meet. Multiple distance and mid-distance athletes excelled at the SEC Indoor Track and Field Championships.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The Southeastern Conference has announced selections for first-team, second-team, and third-team All-SEC honors for the Indoor Track and Field Season.
Tia Wilson (first-team), Hilda Olemomoi (second-team), Jessica Edwards (third-team) and Gabrielle Matthews (third-team) each earned all-conference nods for their respective finishes in their events at the SEC Indoor Track and Field Championships which concluded this weekend in College Station, Texas.
Tia Wilson, the SEC Champion in the indoor mile, takes home a first-team nod from what was her first-career conference championship meet. The native of Bedford, England put together arguably the finest race of her career on day three of the meet, posting a 4:30.10 performance in the mile, a personal record by over six seconds.
Olemomoi finished with a silver medal in the 3000m, running to an 8:57.50 pace. Her second-team selection is the eighth All-SEC honor of her career, counting Cross Country, Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field seasons. This is her second selection as a member of the Orange and Blue
Edwards and Matthews claimed their third-team honors by running the second and third legs of Florida's bronze-winning Distance Medley Relay team. The two were flanked by Wilson and Olemomoi, who ran the 1200m and 1600m legs respectively. Matthews took the handoff from Wilson and delivered a 52.33-second 400m split, and Edwards posted a 2:06.42 800m split before delivering the stick to Olemomoi. Both of those splits were the third-fastest in the field for their respective legs.
The honor is Matthews' second career All-SEC selection and Edwards' first.
No. 3 Gators Travel to Houston for Midweek Tilt. The matchup will be the first time Florida and Houston have met since 2006.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The No. 3 Florida softball team is hitting the road for four games in the state of Texas, starting with a midweek matchup at Houston on Wednesday.
First pitch is set for 7 p.m. ET on ESPN+ from Cougar Softball Stadium.
The Gators (23-1) are coming off a 5-0 week at home, recording victories over FCGU, Florida A&M, Troy, Western Michigan and Samford.
During those five games, Florida outscored its opponents 47-7 and slugged 10 home runs, while allowing just one.
Houston (14-5)
UF’s Strong Finish Ties for Low Round in T5 Outing at Southern Highlands. Florida shot a 7-under round three with five Gators placing par or better today as Jack Turner finished 8th.
LAS VEGAS - The No. 11/10 Florida men's golf team finished strong at the Southern Highlands Collegiate, tying for a tournament-low 7-under final round for a T5 outing on Tuesday.
After shooting +19 in the opening windy round and +7 in the second, Florida continued to improve each round with five out of six Gators shooting par or better today. The team round of 7-under was tied for the lowest with No. 2 Auburn, who won the tournament at 9-under.
Three Gators finished in the top-21 led by Jack Turner with an 8th place performance for his team-high fifth top-10. He fired a final round of 4-under 68, which after a bogey on his third hole, he finished bogey-free with five birdies. The sophomore recorded his 10th career top-10 in his 15th collegiate stroke play event while marking his team-high 11th par or better round this season.
Only a shot behind at 2-over for the week, was Matthew Kress (individual). He carded his second consecutive round of 2-under 70 en route to a T9 finish. In his last two starts, Kress has finished T6 & T9 with four rounds of par or better.
Freshman Zack Swanwick also had a final round of 2-under 70 to total 5-over in his fourth start in the lineup. He finished T21 and logged four birdies in his final set of 18-holes, highlighted by a bogey-free 3-under front nine.
In back-to-back starts in the lineup, redshirt-freshman Rylan Shim notched his low round at Southern Highlands Golf Club with a 1-under 71 this afternoon to finish T63 at +13.
Luke Poulter (+7, T30) and Ian Gilligan (+8, T34) both ended within a shot of one another in round three and overall. Gilligan had an even-par 72 as Poulter had a 1-over 73, who closed out his 54-holes with an eagle on the par5 (592 yards) 9th.
Two more regular-season tournaments remain with the Schenkel Invitational (March 21-23) and Calusa Cup (April 6-8).
Fourteen Gators Qualify for NCAA Women’s Championships. Florida’s 14 combine for 32 individual events.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Fourteen swimmers from the fifth-ranked Florida women’s swimming and diving team qualified for the 2025 NCAA Division I Women’s Swimming & Diving Championships, the organization announced Wednesday.
The four-day competition will be held at the Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way, Washington from March 19-22 and will be hosted by Washington State University.
Anita Bottazzo, Julie Brousseau, Catie Choate, Zoe Dixon, Lainy Kruger, Michaela Mattes, Molly Mayne, Olivia Peoples, Sofia Plaza, JoJo Ramey, Bella Sims, Emma Weyant and Mabel Zavaros are the 14 swimmers that will represent Florida in 32 different events at this year’s championships. Swimmers qualified for the championships by meeting the established minimum time for the events they entered.
Divers will be determined by performances at the Zone Diving Championships, held March 9-12 in Auburn, Ala. Selected divers will be announced on Thursday, March 13, with the men’s selections announced the day prior on Wednesday, March 12.
The Gators also qualified five relays, with the 200 free relay, 400 free relay, 800 free relay, 200 medley relay, 400 medley relay all hitting the qualifying standard. Relay lineups will be determined before the championships.
Florida’s 14 swimmers are the third-most by any school to qualify for this year’s championships, sitting only behind Texas’ 15 swimmers and the 18 individuals from four-time national champions, Virginia.
Eight of the 14 Gators were part of the program’s best finish in 14 years at last year’s 2024 NCAA Championships. The women placed third, totaling 34 All-American Honors en route to three national titles and four runner-up’s.
Bella Sims was crowned the 500 free and 200 free national champion, while earning All-American Honors in her seven events. In addition, four of Florida's five relay teams merited top-five finishes, as the 800 Free Relay team of Sims, Isabel Ivey, Emma Weyant and Micayla Cronk won the program's first National Title in the event since 1989.
Overall, nine swimmers have NCAA Championship experience: Catie Choate, Zoe Dixon, Lainy Kruger, Molly Mayne, JoJo Ramey, Olivia Peoples, Bella Sims, Emma Weyant and Mabel Zavaros. The remaining five are making their first NCAA Championships appearance: Anita Bottazzo, Julie Brousseau, Michaela Mattes, Sofia Plaza and Addison Reese.
A total of 322 participants (281 swimmers and 41 divers) will compete in the championships. Swimmers qualified for the championships by meeting the established minimum time for the events in which they entered. Divers will be determined by performances achieved at the Zone Diving Championships held March 9-15.
ESPN+ will provide live digital coverage for preliminary and finals sessions Wednesday through Saturday. Tape-delayed coverage of the women’s championships will be on ESPNU at 7 p.m. Eastern time, Wednesday, March 26.
Name
Event
Entry Time
Anita Bottazzo
200 Breaststroke
2:08.66
100 Breaststroke
57.49
Julie Brousseau
500 Freestyle
4:34.59
1650 Freestyle
16:00.47
400 IM
4:04.21
Catie Choate
200 Backstroke
1:51.78
100 Backstroke
51.54
Zoe Dixon
400 IM
4:03.99
200 IM
1:54.57
200 Backstroke
1:52.08
Lainy Kruger
200 IM
1:54.08
200 Butterfly
1:55.08
200 Freestyle
1:43.90
Michaela Mattes
500 Freestyle
4:37.95
1650 Freestyle
15:59.38
400 IM
4:08.01
Molly Mayne
200 Breaststroke
2:08.50
100 Breaststroke
58.89
Olivia Peoples
100 Butterfly
50.96
Sofia Plaza
400 IM
4:07.23
JoJo Ramey
200 Backstroke
1:52.33
200 Freestyle
1:44.57
Addison Reese
200 Butterfly
1:55.03
Bella Sims
200 Backstroke
1:48.28
100 Backstroke
48.97
500 Freestyle
4:31.06
Emma Weyant
500 Freestyle
4:35.58
1650 Freestyle
15:53.23
400 IM
3:59.24
Mabel Zavaros
200 Backstroke
1:52.24
400 IM
4:03.93
500 Freestyle
4:38.98
