Feb. 17, 1998

O’Connell Center – 12,000
Gainesville, Florida
February, 18, 1998
8:08 p.m. EST

Broadcasts

• SEC TV Network — Coverage begins at 8 p.m. ET – Tim Brando, Larry Conley
• UK Radio Network — 91 Stations; Coverage begins 6:30 p.m. ET – Ralph Hacker, Sam Bowie, Dave Baker

Rematch With Gators

Seventeen days after Florida traveled to Lexington and defeated Kentucky 86-68, to end the Wildcats’ streak of 10 straight wins over the Gators, the two teams meet again in the Sunshine State.

Both teams are coming off losses in their last outings. The Wildcats dropped their fourth game of the season, their third at home, when Ole Miss pulled out its first win in Lexington since 1927, 73-64. Meanwhile, Florida shot just 4-19 from three-point range and committed 23 turnovers as Alabama rolled in Tuscaloosa, 80-66.

Since the two teams met on Feb. 1, UK has won three of its last four meetings while Florida has split its four games with one win (Mississippi State, 82-78), coming in overtime.

The Florida Series

• Kentucky will try to gain a split with Florida in the regular-season series. The last time Florida beat Kentucky twice during the regular season was in 1988. That year, the Gators defeated the Cats 58-56 in Lexington and then beat UK 83-76 in Gainesville to sweep the series.
• UK leads the series 72-21. In Gainesville, the Cats own a 26-13 series edge and have won the last three meetings. The last Florida home victory over UK came on Jan. 18, 1994, a 59-57 decision. Florida outrebounded the Cats in that contest, 51-39, as both teams shot less than 35 percent from the field.
• The Florida win on Feb. 1 gave Gator coach and former UK assistant Billy Donovan his first win over the Wildcats in five attempts. He was 0-2 against Kentucky at Marshall and now holds a 1-2 mark vs. the Cats at Florida. Coach Tubby Smith is 4-1 against Florida.

Cat Tales

• The Wildcats have four regular-season games remaining, three on the road. UK has a perfect 8-0 mark on opponents’ home floors. The Cats’ last home game — Senior Day — will be against Georgia on Sunday, Feb. 22, at 1 p.m.
• No. 8 UK remains the highest-ranked team in the SEC. Kentucky leads No. 13 South Carolina, No. 15 Ole Miss and No. 16 Arkansas. The Wildcats own a 5-2 record vs. ranked opponents this season.
• The Cats lead the SEC’s Eastern Division by one game over South Carolina. UK also leads both South Carolina and Arkansas in the race for the league championship by one game. The Cats own victories this season over both the Gamecocks and the Razorbacks.

Florida Gators (13-9, 6-6)No.  Name            Pos Ht.   Wt.   Cl     PPG   RPG24   Greg Stolt      F   6-8   221   Jr.   11.9   5.034   Obiora Nnaji    C   6-11  240   So.    3.5   3.552   Kenyan Weaks    G   6-4   190   So.   12.7   3.655   Jason Williams  G   6-1   190   Jr.   17.1  *6.7 3   Eddie Shannon   G   5-11  167   Jr.   11.0  *4.0 Kentucky Wildcats (22-4, 10-2)34   Scott Padgett   F   6-9   229   Jr.   10.8   6.7 3   Allen Edwards   F   6-5   200   Sr.    8.8   3.213   Nazr Mohammed   C   6-10  240   Jr.   12.2   7.715   Jeff Sheppard   G   6-3   190   Sr.   11.9   3.7 5   Wayne Turner    G   6-2   187   Jr.    9.5  *4.0* Assists per gameThe CoachesOrlando