Alabama must find a way to score without Earnest Shelton as its hosts conference rival Florida on Tuesday.
The Crimson Tide (11-5, 3-2 Southeastern Conference) were rolling with three straight wins before Shelton went down with a sprained right medial collateral ligament in Wednesday's 45-42 win over Georgia.
Shelton, averaging a team-high 15.5 points, will be out indefinitely, leaving a big offensive hole for Alabama to fill.
``I think it really hurts us,'' Crimson Tide head coach Mark Gottfried. ``We don't know how long it's going to be. Any team that loses their leading scorer, obviously that makes things a lot more difficult for you.''
Alabama struggled without Shelton on Saturday, losing to Mississippi 71-60. Antoine Pettway had 25 points, six rebounds and three assists to lead the Crimson Tide. Kennedy Winston had 15 points and Demetrius Smith had 12, but the remainder of the team was 3-of-15 from the field and turned the ball over 18 times.
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Pettway opened the game with a jumper for the only lead Alabama enjoyed.
The 22nd-ranked Gators (12-4, 3-2) have lost two of their last three games. David Lee scored 10 of his 12 points in the second half to help Florida end its losing skid at two games with a 68-52 victory over Auburn on Saturday.
Guard Anthony Roberson made his first six shots en route to 21 points for the Gators.
Florida's full court press proved to be the difference in the game, forcing 22 Tigers turnovers.
Florida has won five of the last six regular season meetings between the two schools, winning most recently in Gainesville a year ago, 75-56.
The Gators last loss to Alabama came in their last trip to Tuscaloosa two years ago. Pettway took a perfect pass from Shelton and laid it in at the buzzer to give then-No. 5 Alabama a 65-64 win over then-No. 8 Florida.
