With the Florida basketball team routing the Arkansas Razorbacks by 34 points, 111-77the program has seen a significant boost in the AP College Basketball rankings. As the Florida basketball team's thrashing of Arkansas sent a statement to the country, the rankings reflect that with the reigning champions climbing up the poll.

After the Gators were the seventh-ranked program in the nation, they have now moved up two spots to the No. 5 position. Now, with the season in March, the team is preparing to make another run in the quest to win back-to-back national championships.

Looking at the SEC, the win over the Razorbacks also gives them a share of the regular-season conference title, as the Gators have been on a roll, winning nine straight contests.

Todd Golden on Florida basketball's outlook for the rest of March

Florida head coach Todd Golden during the second half an NCAA basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Saturday, January 24, 2026. Auburn won 76-67 [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]
© Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
While the sports world will have thoughts on whether the Florida basketball team is a March Madness pretender
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or contender, there's no denying they've shown how effective they can be. Gators head coach Todd Golden spoke after the win over Arkansas on the mindset the team has heading into the rest of March.

“Yeah, I mean, we're playing really good basketball right now. I think we're getting contributions from a number of guys. I think that's probably allowed us to become an even better team,” Golden said, via 247 Sports.

“But it's been the story of our conference season, it's been the story of our run,” Golden continued. “We're getting a lot of great contributions from guys, and when we're able to get rest for starters, those guys can come in and keep the score going the right direction, it's huge for us, and against a lot of these teams that we play, they're really talented but they don't have the depth that we do where we're able to wear teams down.”

At any rate, the Florida basketball team, now at a 23-6 record, looks to win the SEC regular season title outright by beating Mississippi State on Tuesday night, which could mark the program's 10th straight victory.