Alabama basketball could be without one of its top stars in the second half of Saturday’s SEC Tournament semifinal matchup with Florida. Grant Nelson is questionable to return against the Gators after leaving the game late in the first half, according to a UA spokesperson

Nelson checked out with 3:40 remaining in the half and did not return. He suffered a lower left leg injury, per UA.

The forward from North Dakota would be a crucial loss for the Crimson Tide if he is unable to return for the second half. Alabama trailed 47-45 at the halftime break.

Nelson did not appear on the bench to start the second half of the game. With 19:01 left in the half, he returned to the bench area from the tunnel, wearing long sleeves over his Alabama jersey.

The Tide was outrebounded 50-35 in the first matchup to Florida, a loss at Coleman Coliseum. Nelson had hoped to help fix that issue in the semifinal game.

“I think it just starts with hitting them early,” Nelson said after the . “And then I think if we just crash harder. Because last time I feel like we weren’t crashing (to) our full potential, it kind of looked like we were a little slow out there the whole night, so I think just being active on the boards will help a lot, and then hitting their bigs early, crash pretty hard.”

Nelson had three rebounds at the time of his exit. He also had nine points for the Crimson Tide, including a thundering dunk that brought UA fans to their feet at Bridgestone Arena.

Alabama beat Kentucky to advance to the semifinal round, after earning a double-bye to start the tournament. The Gators did the same, and began the tournament by beating Missouri.

The winner of Saturday’s game will face Tennessee Sunday, after the Volunteers beat Auburn in the early semifinal. The Alabama-Florida game is being aired on ESPN.