Florida in majority of college basketball picks in clash with Alabama

It’s a matchup of division leaders from the Southeastern Conference as the West Division leading Alabama Crimson Tide face the East Division leading and 14th ranked Florida Gators at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center in Gainesville.

Alabama (19-9, 11-3 SEC) at #14 Florida (22-6, 11-3 SEC)
 Date/Time: Tuesday, March 1, 2011, 7:00 PM EST     
Venue: Stephen C. O’Connell Center in Gainesville, FL.
Broadcast: ESPNU

Money Line: OFF
Spread: Florida -6
Over/Under: 123 

The Gators have been ranked in the Top 25 most of the season and are the favorites to win next week’s SEC Tournament in Atlanta. This makes them a heavy favorite in the minds of most making college basketball picks. With an RPI of 12, the Gators are a lock for an at-large bid even if they don’t win the conference tournament.

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The Crimson Tide may have clinched the West Division title. But with an RPI of 89, which is only seventh best in the conference and is lower than Mississippi – a team with a losing record in the SEC, they need to impress the committee. This is why some making college basketball picks are very hesitant to select Bama on the road. But a victory on the road this late in the season, and at least one quality win in the SEC tournament, will go a long way towards enhancing their March Madness resume.

Florida’s offense is driven by balanced scoring from four veteran players. Erving Walker leads the Gators in scoring at 14.6 PPG. Kenny Boynton is at 13.5 PPG and is clutch at the charity stripe, hitting on 83.5 percent of his free throws. Vernon Macklin (11.2 PPG) and Chandler Parsons (11.1 PPG) round out this quartet.

Alabama has three players averaging double figures per game, enticing some to take a chance on selecting them in their college basketball picks. JaMychal Green has good size inside and leads the Tide with 16.1 PPG as well team-best numbers in rebounds (7.4 RPG) and blocks (2.2 BPG). Tony Mitchell is second on the club in scoring (15.7 PPG) on the strength of a 53.7 percent field goal percentage, which is fourth best in the SEC. Trevor Releford (10.3 PPG) is also an offensive factor for Alabama.

This is obviously an important game for Alabama this late in the season, but the Gators are near impossible to beat in Gainesville. We’ll take Billy Donovan’s crew as one our college basketball picks in this one to cover the spread.