No. 13 Alabama required a spark against No. 24 Florida. UA was without a starting guard and its second-best three-point shooter Latrell Wrightsell Jr. and its star, Mark Sears, saw his eight-game streak of at least 20 points end.

The conference matchup then opened with four straight points from forward Grant Nelson. It closed with a group of white jerseys mobbing Sam Walters near midcourt. Was the timing a coincidence? Definitely, but both moments signified the growth that the Crimson Tide needed to exhibit ahead of March.

Head coach Nate Oats credited Nelson with the best game of the season and applauded Walters for his growth as a freshman — Walters swished a season-high four 3-pointers as Alabama (19-7, 11-2 SEC) rallied in the second half to beat Florida (18-8, 8-5), 98-93, in overtime. Nelson produced a team-best 22 points with six blocks and eight rebounds.

Their continued production will be key against No. 17 Kentucky with Wrightsell’s status unclear with a head injury and Alabama desperately needing a strong interior presence on defense as it pushes toward the postseason.

As Florida built an early lead and pushed the margin toward double-digits, Nelson popped the Coleman Coliseum crowd with a drop-step block and a pair of dunks. The 6-foot-11 big shook his head following another block later in the fame. He’s grown into the expectations fans set for him as the prize transfer of the offseason.

Nelson’s nine field goals in 14 attempts were a season-high. Nelson scored his lone 3-pointer during a Tide run to cut the deficit to one with 3:06 remaining.

Nelson also grabbed six defensive rebounds and stopped Florida from getting an advantage of the glass — UA finished with 21 offensive rebounds compared to UF’s 17. The Gators entered as one of the better offensive-rebounding teams in the country, retaining possession on more than 40% of their misses.

“Crashing (the glass) is something that we’ve been stressing all week,” Walters said. ” … We figured out we needed to crash harder ‘cause we’re pretty athletic, pretty long.”

Walters sunk UA’s first deep ball of the second half nearly midway through the frame and followed up with another on the next possession. Earlier, during a team timeout, Oats had stressed to the team that it didn’t matter they started two-of-18, they had to keep shooting. Walters, a 47.2% shooter from 3-point range, didn’t need to be told twice.

He added three rebounds and two blocks against Florida, the team he grew up watching. About an hour south of Gainesville, Walters developed into a four-star prospect at Villages (Fla.) Charter.

“Sam has grown a crazy amount,” Nelson said. “When he got here couldn’t really guard, a step slow, didn’t understand defensive positioning. But over the last couple months, he’s really stepped it up and taken coaching well.”

With Alabama attempting to hold onto a late lead, forward Nick Pringle fouled out. Oats plucked Walters off the bench. Though he missed a 3, Walters later sprinted toward the rim and tipped a ball toward Aaron Estrada. The guard converted and iced UA’s league-leading 11th win.

As Alabama pushes for a second-straight conference title, its defense will continue to be in the spotlight. Oats said postgame he joked with Walters that as his guarding improves, he can still try to be a two-way player. Against the Gators, Walters agreed.

Nick Alvarez is a reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @nick_a_alvarez or email him at [email protected].