posted March 13, 2008 at 17:50 in NCAA B Free Picks

BetUS NCAA basketball betting odds: FLORIDA -3.5, Total 149.5

The Florida Gators (21-10 SU, 11-11 ATS) hope to get going with their last-ditch effort to make the NCAA field as they face off against the Alabama Crimson Tide (16-15 SU, 10-15 ATS) in a quarterfinal game in the Southeastern Conference tournament, scheduled to tip off at 7:30 PM ET at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta.

In the BetUS NCAA basketball betting odds, Florida is listed as a 3.5-point favorite, with a total of 149.5 points.

Here are some of the NCAAB betting trends as they relate to this matchup:

* ALA has lost 11 of its last 16 games SU

* ALA has played six of its last nine games UNDER the total

* FLA has covered one of its last five games

* FLA has lost five of its last seven games SU

* FLA has played six of its last nine games OVER the total

* FLA has won seven of the last eight meetings SU

* FLA has covered five of the last eight meetings

* Three of the last five meetings have gone UNDER the total

* FLA has had the shooting edge in eight of the last nine meetings

* FLA has made more three-pointers in four of the last five meetings

If there was any time for Florida to kick it into another gear, this would be it. With an RPI (Ratings Percentage Index) rating of 52, the Gators might have to make it to the finals of the SEC tournament in order to get to the NCAA's. Billy Donovan's team had a shot to greatly improve its standing down the stretch, but lost three straight to end the regular season, albeit to pretty capable teams (Mississippi State, Tennessee, Kentucky).

Those aforementioned teams were also very strong on the defensive end, which is something Alabama doesn't necessarily share. Remember that Florida shoots 49% as a team, and has the ability to be sizzling at times, as outbursts of 58% against South Carolina and 59.6% against Tennessee would seem to indicate.

No, this is a team that couldn't stand up to Donovan's juggernaut of the last two seasons. But 'Bama seems to always underachieve under Mark Gottfried, and aside from the season-closing home win over poor-traveling Vanderbilt, there are no overly significant wins on the ledger.

The Tide has a capable frontcourt, but has missed guard Ronald Steele from the start, and have most likely lost another member of the backcourt as a knee injury sidelines Senario Hillman, a promising freshman (and a Georgian). This is something they can't afford.

Hopes are still flickering for Florida. And in a game between a coach who's been there and one who hasn't, we'd rather take the achiever in a do-or-die situation. We lay the points with Florida, the 3.5-point favorite in the BetUS NCAAB odds.

JAY'S PLAY: FLORIDA

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(Charles Jay of http://www.eBookies.com gives it the old college try as a regular contributor to the BetUS Locker Room)