The UF-Kentucky rivalry is littered with golden moments.
In 2003, the Gators rolled into Rupp Arena as the nation's No. 1 team only to have the No. 6 Wildcats thump them 70-55 in front of a crowd of almost 25,000.
Gators fans will never forget David Lee climbing on top of the scorers' table at the O'Connell Center to celebrate when UF finally beat Kentucky 53-52 in 2005 after losing eight straight to the Southeastern Conference bully.
And in 2007, UF became only the second SEC school to beat Kentucky in five consecutive meetings.
But with neither school ranked in any of the national polls heading into tonight's showdown in Lexington, Ky., and Kentucky (16-7, 5-3 SEC) coming off its third straight loss, this once-fierce rivalry seems to have lost a bit of its luster.
"Is the rivalry more important than Vanderbilt or Georgia or Tennessee or South Carolina? I don't know," UF coach Billy Donovan said. "It's one game right now. It's a game on the road. Both teams are a game apart. I think it will be a big game for both teams. To say it's bigger than another game, I wouldn't say that right now."
Unlike Donovan, his players are quick to defend the game.
"I don't think the rivalry has lost anything," forward Chandler Parsons said. "Our fans don't like them. Their fans don't like us. It's going to be a war out there."
Having followed the rivalry from afar as a child, Parsons said that playing in it is somewhat of a dream come true.
"To have watched it all growing up and to now be a part of it is really something special," Parsons said.
UF and Kentucky have won 13 of the last 17 SEC championships, and with 43 SEC regular season titles, the Wildcats have nearly as many conference crowns as the rest of league combined (44). UF has won the SEC four times, the last coming in 2007.
"They're definitely a rival," forward Dan Werner said. "Kentucky has dominated this league for a while."
But in recent years, it has been the Gators (19-4, 6-2 SEC) who have had the best of the matchup, winning seven of the last eight meetings between the two schools.
If the team hopes to grab win No. 8, UF will have to slow down guard Jodie Meeks, who is averaging 25 points per game this season.
Earlier this year Meeks scored 54 points in Kentucky's 90-72 win at Tennessee.
The Gators want to avoid a similar fate.
"I don't think any team wants somebody to score 54 points on them," guard Erving Walker said. "We don't want that to be us."
Down low, UF will have its hands full with sophomore Patrick Patterson.
Patterson chose to play at Kentucky over UF two years ago and has since become one of the nation's most productive big men.
"I don't know if anyone has ever handled him down low," Donovan said. "He's one of the better players in the league, and he's a tremendous post-up player."
Patterson is averaging 18 points and nine rebounds per game on the year.
"I don't think it's any secret that we have some challenges in the frontcourt," Donovan said.
