No. 5 Florida spoils No. 7 Alabama's Senior Night, gains leg up in race for NCAA tournament's final No. 1 seed

In a game with significant NCAA tournament implications, No. 5 Florida pulled away Wednesday night for a 99-94 road win over seventh-ranked Alabama.

The win spoiled Alabama's Senior Night in Mark Sears' final home game and gave Florida a leg up over the Crimson Tide in the race for the final No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament.

Alabama faced and battled back from multiple deficits throughout the game. Florida opened a 15-8 lead that Alabama answered with a 9-0 run. The Gators retook the lead at 36-31 that Alabama answered again with a 9-0 run.

But Alabama had no response to Florida's final surge. The Gators turned a 50-47 second-half deficit into a 75-63 lead with 7:41 remaining that Alabama couldn't overcome

Sears and Florida's Walter Clayton Jr. went toe-to-toe in a showcase of All-SEC guards. But Florida's superior rebounding and half-court execution limited Alabama's normally potent transition offense. Florida dominated the glass on both sides of the court to repeatedly create its own transition opportunities and second-chance points.

Alabama stopped Florida from running away with the game and cut its deficit to 94-90 with 20.5 seconds remaining. But it never cut Florida's lead to one possession.

Who will secure NCAA tournament's final No. 1 seed?

The first three No. 1 seeds in the NCAA tournament are virtual locks. They'll almost certainly go to Duke, Auburn and Houston. The fourth No. 1 seed is up for grabs with a handful of SEC teams and Michigan State among the contenders.

Florida and Alabama both entered Wednesday's game in contention. But Alabama's loss to Florida was a second straight to a fellow contender after No. 4 Tennessee beat the Crimson Tide on Saturday. Alabama lost significant ground while Tennessee and Florida are very much still alive for a top seed.