For the last several seasons the Florida State non-conference game has been a measuring stick for how Florida basketball compares to the top teams in the country. For seven straight years from 2014 to 2020, that meant the Gators having a disappointing omen with treacherous losses to the Seminoles, with most of those losses being microcosms for the issues the Gators would face later in the season.
Last season the Gators exorcised their demons, going on the road to Tallahassee and blowing out the the Seminoles 71-55. At the time Florida State was thought to be one of the top teams in the ACC and a high seed in the NCAA Tournament, but it was actually the Gators who got to play the role of exposing a team for their biggest flaws.