Gators dominate Kentucky, igniting NCAA Tournament buzz. A projected No. 2 seed, Florida is peaking at the perfect time.
Following an 86-67 win over Texas A&M on Feb. 7, Florida surged from No. 17 to No. 14 in the latest rankings.
The Gators kept their momentum going this week, starting with an impressive 86-66 win over Georgia on the road on Wednesday night in front of 10,034 fans at Stegeman Coliseum in Athens, Georgia.
Florida had a big matchup against No. 25 Kentucky on Saturday. The Gators answered the call, beating the Wildcats 92-83 in front of 11,230 fans at Stephen C. O'Connell Center.
Senior guard Xavian Lee led the Gators with 22 points, helping Florida earn a 19-6 record overall and a 10-2 record in SEC play. The Gators are No. 1 in the SEC, leading No. 21 Arkansas by one game.
After Florida's win over Kentucky, Joe Lunardi of ESPN projected the program to earn a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament, bumping Purdue to a No. 3 seed.
During his postgame news conference on Saturday, Florida head coach Todd Golden said the team is trending upward at this point in the season.
"We're trending. I don't necessarily have a goal of where we want to be at a certain point," Golden said, via 247Sports. "We just want to get better, and we've definitely done that over the course of conference play. We've improved in a lot of different ways.
"Our bench has really stepped up and given us the ability to play eight and be complete that way. And we've been pretty consistent... So they're starting to hit their stride, but we're getting there. We're not all the way."
This week, Florida will host South Carolina (11-14) on Tuesday before traveling to play Ole Miss (11-14) on Saturday.
The Gators should cruise against those two SEC programs before facing tougher challenges against Texas and No. 21 Arkansas to finish February.
For now, Golden isn't worried about anything other than the Gators' upcoming contest against South Carolina.
"This team has been at its best when we've living in the now, and focusing on getting better everyday, and not worrying about anything other than the next game," he said.
Florida is in good position to gain momentum before the NCAA Tournament.
The win over Kentucky should give the team confidence before playing a tougher schedule next week.