Florida–Kentucky men's basketball rivalry
The Florida–Kentucky men's basketball rivalry[1] is an annual rivalry series between the Florida Gators and the Kentucky Wildcats basketball teams. The two schools are permanent SEC rivals, meaning that they are scheduled to play twice a year in the SEC regular season while they rotate which four of the other 12 SEC teams they will play twice that season. Florida and Kentucky first met in 1927, with Kentucky winning 44–36. The two teams have played 144 times in total, with Kentucky holding a commanding 10440 lead in the series. Despite Kentucky's lopsided series lead, this rivalry has produced many memorable games, including several match-ups in the SEC Tournament Championship Game (the most recent of which Florida defeated Kentucky 61–60, in 2014). Billy Donovan's arrival to Gainesville increased the competitiveness, with the rivalry placing seventh-best in college basketball on a 2013 ranking by Bleacher Report.[2] In addition, the Gators also hold the distinction of being the only team to ever defeat Kentucky seven straight times.
Sport | Basketball |
---|---|
First meeting | January 23, 1927 Florida 36, Kentucky 44 |
Latest meeting | March 9, 2019 Florida 57, Kentucky 66 |
Next meeting | February 22, 2020 |
Statistics | |
Meetings total | 142 |
All-time series | Kentucky, 102–40 |
Longest win streak | Kentucky, 18 (1942–1964) |
Current win streak | Kentucky, 2 (2019–present) |
Location of Kentucky and Florida |
Game results
Source[3]
Kentucky leads the overall series 104–40, and leads the SEC Championship Game series 3–2. However, the rivalry has become much more even lately in the 2000s and 2010s,[4] with Kentucky holding a narrow 17–16 series lead since 2005, and Florida having a 2–1 advantage in the last three SEC Championship Game meetings. Kentucky victories are shaded blue, Florida victories are shaded orange. Games with * denote a meeting in the SEC Tournament, while games with ** denote a meeting in the SEC Tournament Championship Game.
Florida victories | Kentucky victories | Tie games |
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References
- Horovitz, Bruce. "Kentucky vs. Florida: The SEC's Best (and Only) Basketball Rivalry". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 2020-06-20.
- Novak, Thad. "Ranking the 25 Best Rivalries in College Basketball". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 2020-06-20.
- "Kentucky's Record versus Florida". Archived from the original on 16 March 2014. Retrieved 16 March 2014.
- Writer, Brendan Farrell, Sports. "The Gators travel to Kentucky with a lot on the line". The Independent Florida Alligator. Retrieved 2020-06-20.