Denzel Aberdeen on facing Florida, his former team: 'It might not be that much love on that day'

For the first time, National Champion and three-year Gator Denzel Aberdeen will face off against his former program on Saturday. No. 25 Kentucky, winners of eight of its last nine, will clash against red-hot No. 14 Florida in Gainesville. The winner will go to 9-3 in the SEC, good for first place in the conference.

Aberdeen played 83 games at Florida, averaging 5.1 points, 1.0 assists, and 1.2 rebounds. He saw his usage skyrocket in his third and final season, averaging 19.8 minutes off the bench. As a junior, Aberdeen averaged 7.7 points and 3.2 assists behind star guards Walter Clayton Jr., Alijah Martin, and Will Richard.

Although he likely would have been elevated to a starting role this season, Aberdeen hopped in the Transfer Portal and ended up at Kentucky. Although the game is taking place on Valentine’s Day, Aberdeen joked that there will be no love lost in the matchup.

“It might not be that much love on that day, for sure. It’s going to be a battle for sure,” Aberdeen said. “I most definitely miss my guys and stuff like that. But it’s going to be a battle for sure. (Thomas Haugh) is my dog and best friend ever since he stepped on campus. When he first stepped on campus, he was begging for No. 10, so I gave it to him.”

Denzel Aberdeen has been major factor in Kentucky’s turnaround this season

Aberdeen and Kentucky‘s season started off extremely rocky after opening the season ranked No. 9 in the Preseason AP Poll Rankings. The Wildcats went just 9-4 in non-conference play, and opened SEC play with back-to-back losses to No. 14 Alabama and Missouri. Since then, however, the ‘Cats have been among the best teams in the conference.

Kentucky has won eight of its last nine games, including wins over No. 24/25 Tennessee (twice), Texas, and No. 15 Arkansas. In conference play (11 games), Aberdeen is averaging 13 points and three assists on 42% shooting from the field (39% shooting from three-point range). He has made at least two three-point shots in eight of 11 SEC games.

A win over the Gators on Saturday would give the Wildcats their seventh Q1 victory of the season. They can keep crawling up the NCAA Tournament seed line. Kentucky is projected as a No. 7 seed in On3’s latest Bracketology. A win for Florida, however, would give Todd Golden‘s team its eighth Q1 victory of the year. It is currently projected as a No. 3 seed in On3’s Bracketology.