In a weak SEC, a victory by Florida today can go a long way to claiming one of the two East Division byes in the SEC Tournament. Taking one of those spots would likely guarantee Florida an NCAA berth.
Florida is only as good as their competition this season. You could shake a bag, pick out a team, and make the case that they are the best or worst team in the conference. With that in mind, Florida needs to collect home wins to avoid the eventual losses at Kentucky, Tennessee and the random road loss.
It will be up to Nick Calathes, since he is the only true scoring threat and the only pure passer. His play, as well as Erving Walker coming off the bench, have been the highlights the Gators start. But Calathes needs to take the leadership role too. Dan Werner and Walt Hodge, despite their ages, are not going to do that. If Calathes can rally the team, the Gators will build momentum heading into two road games next week. The Gators might be 15-2, but it is an inconsistent 15-2. Calathes is the guy with the ability to keep UF rolling and finally establish a plan of attack, which has been lacking in the two seasons beyond the back-to-back titles.