Florida frontcourt overwhelms Bediako, routs Alabama in SEC showcase

Edgar Thompson, Orlando Sentinel on Feb 1, 2026

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida’s frontcourt nullified Alabama’s controversial 7-footer Charles Bediako and continued to dominate the Crimson Tide, making a statement entering the heart of SEC play — and backing up coach Todd Golden’s guarantee.

With Dick Vitale courtside, a national TV audience tuned in on ABC and 10 NBA scouts on hand, the No. 19 Gators (16-6, 7-2 SEC) turned in one of their most complete performances this season during a 100-77 rout of No. 23 Alabama (14-7- 4-4).

Florida’s fifth straight win against Nate Oats’ team came on the heels of Bediako’s return after two seasons in the NBA’s G-League, a move drawing criticism across the college sports landscape and a bold prediction from Golden.

“We’re going to beat ’em anyways,” he said during a Jan. 22 appearance on UF’s weekly “Gator Talk” radio show.

The Gators backed up their 40-year-old coach with another rout of Bama, losers by an 17.3 points during the streak. Golden reluctantly took a victory lap.

“I was thinking about that a lot last night, actually,” he said. “This was a big, one-off ABC game; they were going to try to find different ways to stir it up. With that being said, yeah, absolutely to come out and impose our will the way we did.”

Expected to bolster the Crimson Tide’s front court, Bediako did little slow down one of the nation’s top front courts before fouling out after totaling six points and seven rebounds.

The Gators outscored the Crimson Tide 72-26 in the paint behind a SEC season-best 25 points by power forward Alex Condon and finished with a 44-33 rebounding advantage. Once again, Rueben Chinyelu led the way, finishing with 14 points and 17 boards — his 13th double-double and 16th time the 6-foot-11, 265-pound junior has led the Gators on the glass.

Chinyelu, Condon and Thomas Haugh, who scored 22 points, did not have to shoulder the load Sunday before a sellout crowd of 10,627 in the O’Dome.

Sophomore point guard Boogie Fland filled the box score with 13 points, seven assists and just one turnover, along with a career-high eight steals — two leading to first-half dunks with the game still in the balance.

“The disruption he creates on the defensive side is incredible,” Golden said. “He was just taking the ball. He’s a gritty basketball player.”

Fland’s floor game led to a two-turnover day for Florida, the first when Haugh lost the ball with 16:40 remaining in the second half.

“We’re finally getting comfortable playing together and understanding how to stay in our offense and not to settle,” Golden said. “We need to be a team that wins in the margins.”

Fland’s tenacity spearheaded a defensive effort featuring three consecutive stops of Alabama on eight difference occasions.

“When we’re at our best, our defense and our rebounding is leading to our offense,” Golden said.

Behind Haugh and Condon, Florida closed the first half with a flourish. With the game tied 28-28, a Condon dunk ignited a 13-2 run capped by a Haugh 3-pointer. The Gators led 46-36 at halftime, with Condon and Haugh combining for 27 points.

The Gators immediately extended the advantage with a 12-0 run after intermission and never looked back during their latest rout of Bama.

“We still haven’t played our best basketball game yet,” Fland said. “That is the crazy part. We’re scoring 100 and not playing our best basketball.”

Florida shot 3 of 13 from 3-point range and squandered some chances in transition.

Yet, the 17th win in 18 home games for Golden’s team also came just eight days after Florida came out flat during a 76-67 loss to Auburn, a performance the Gators vowed not to repeat against the Crimson Tide.

Flroida’s 7-foot-9 redshirt freshman Olivier Rioux scored the Gators’ final points on a putback of his own miss with 30 seconds to go, putting an exclamation point on another Alabama beatdown.

“Pretty, pretty neat moment on this Sunday,,” Golden said.

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