The No. 9 LSU Tigers begin their quest to win an SEC tournament title as they tip off against the Florida Gators at Bridgestone Arena in an SEC quarterfinal. Florida snapped its three-game slide with a 66-50 win over Arkansas yesterday, while LSU is seeking a sixth straight win. The Tigers and Gators split their two-game season series and LSU is a 3-point favorite with the total Sportsbook at 135 points.
LSU will be without head coach Will Wade and potentially its fourth-best scorer in freshman guard Javonte Smart, who averaged 9.5 points in the two games vs Florida. The Tigers have the edge offensively, but the Gators are much better defensively. I think these teams match up really well, going to overtime in their first two meetings, and with all the controversy surrounding the Tigers right now, I’ll take the Gators and the points.
LSU is 5-0 SU and ATS in its last five games.home The total has gone UNDER in 10 of Florida’s last 12 games.away These two teams split their two-game season series this year, both games going to overtime.