Florida basketball breaks into Top 25 for first time since 2021. Here's where UF is ranked
Florida basketball broke into the AP Top 25 for the first-time in head coach Todd Golden's two-year tenure, coming in at No. 24 in this week's AP Top 25.
The Florida Gators (18-7, 8-4 SEC) have won seven of their last eight games since a 1-3 conference start, with their lone loss coming by one-point at Texas A&M on Feb. 3.
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Since the Texas A&M loss, Florida has won three straight including back-to-back wins last week over LSU (82-80) and at Georgia (88-82). On Saturday, UF rallied back from 11 points down in the first half to beat the Bulldogs.
“It means a lot to get a road game victory," Florida guard Walter Clayton Jr. said. "That’s always big. The big rivalry for me – I’ve said it multiple times – is FSU. Georgia was the rivalry after that, so I’m glad we got the win for the fans.”
It's the first time that UF basketball is ranked in the Top 25 since holding a No. 20 ranking the week of Dec. 6, 2021, during Mike White's final season as coach.
Florida is one of six SEC teams ranked in the AP Top 25, a list that includes Tennessee (5), Alabama (13), Auburn (14), Kentucky (17) and South Carolina (20).
In the USA Today coaches poll, Florida remained unranked, receiving 40 votes.
Florida will get a showdown with another ranked team, playing at No. 13 Alabama on Wednesday night (7 p.m., ESPN2). The Gators then will return home to host Vanderbilt on Saturday at the O'Connell Center (1 p.m. tip, SEC Network).
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Florida Gators basketball ranked in Top 25 for first time under Todd Golden
