Florida Gators
SEC (19-15, 9-9)
Florida has had a very interesting season. At one point the Gators were 12-11 overall and 4-5 in SEC play. Their NCAA Tournament hopes were all but gone. However, they still had a respectable RPI and were a decent run away from becoming a serious contender for their third straight NCAA Tournament appearance. And they got that run starting on February 13th when they pulled off five wins in a row, including a huge overtime victory at LSU.
Big Wins: 1/30 Mississippi (90-86), 2/16 at Alabama (71-53), 2/20 at LSU (82-77)
Bad Losses: 11/23 vs Butler (54-61), 1/5 South Carolina (69-71), 3/2 Georgia (55-61)
Coach: Michael White
Why They Can Surprise:
This is a pretty young Florida team that plays solid defense and takes care of the basketball and nearly always wins the turnover battle. As those younger players like freshmen Andrew Nembhard, Noah Locke and Keyontae Johnson keep improving, this is a Gators squad that can do some damage in the postseason. Nembhard is a big 6-5 point guard who averages 8.1 points and 5.3 assists. Locke is the team’s most prolific and consistent outside shooter and it will be key for Florida that Locke knocks down some shots.
Why They Can Disappoint:
Johnson joins senior Kevarrius Hayes to form a decent frontcourt when it comes to scoring and Hayes does a lot of work blocking shots too. However, this is not a strong group on the glass. They can very easily lose all of those extra possessions they get by winning the turnover battle on the glass. And this is not a Florida team that has the offensive firepower to keep up with most teams and they need all the extra possessions they can get.
Probable Starters:
Andrew Nembhard, Freshman, Guard, 8.1 ppg, 5.3 apg
KeVaughn Allen, Senior, Guard, 12.0 ppg, 2.0 apg
Noah Locke, Freshman, Guard, 9.6 ppg
Keyontae Johnson, Freshman, Forward, 8.1 ppg, 6.2 rpg
Kevarrius Hayes, Senior, Center, 8.1 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 1.9 bpg
Key Role Players:
Jalen Hudson, Senior, Guard, 9.0 ppg, 2.9 rpg
Deaundrae Ballard, Sophomore, Guard, 4.6 ppg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 68.3 (281st in nation, 13th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 63.7 (21, 1)
Field-Goal Percentage: 42.3 (280, 12)
Field-Goal Defense: 42.2 (83, 4)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 8.2 (121, 3)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 33.4 (231, 10)
Free-Throw Percentage: 72.1 (123, 5)
Rebound Margin: -1.3 (239, 13)
Assists Per Game: 12.3 (265, 11)
Turnovers Per Game: 11.6 (59, 2)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
| 2018 | NCAA | Round of 64 win over St. Bonaventure |
| 2018 | NCAA | Round of 32 loss to Texas Tech |
| 2017 | NCAA | Round of 64 win over East Tennessee State |
| 2017 | NCAA | Round of 32 win over Virginia |
| 2017 | NCAA | Regional Semifinal win over Wisconsin |
| 2017 | NCAA | Regional Final loss to South Carolina |
| 2016 | NIT | First Round win over North Florida |
| 2016 | NIT | Second Round win over Ohio State |
| 2016 | NIT | Quarterfinal loss to George Washington |
| 2014 | NCAA | Round of 64 win over Albany |
| 2014 | NCAA | Round of 32 win over Pittsburgh |
| 2014 | NCAA | Regional Semifinal win over UCLA |
| 2014 | NCAA | Regional Final win over Dayton |
| 2014 | NCAA | National Semifinal loss to Connecticut |
| 2013 | NCAA | Round of 64 win over Northwestern State |
| 2013 | NCAA | Round of 32 win over Minnesota |
| 2013 | NCAA | Regional Semifinal win over Florida Gulf Coast |
| 2013 | NCAA | Regional Final loss to Michigan |
| 2012 | NCAA | Round of 64 win over Virginia |
| 2012 | NCAA | Round of 32 win over Norfolk State |
| 2012 | NCAA | Regional Semifinal win over Marquette |
| 2012 | NCAA | Regional Final loss to Louisville |
| 2011 | NCAA | Round of 64 win over UC-Santa Barbara |
| 2011 | NCAA | Round of 32 win over UCLA |
| 2011 | NCAA | Regional Semifinal win over BYU |
| 2011 | NCAA | Regional Final loss to Butler |
| 2010 | NCAA | Round of 64 loss to BYU |
| 2009 | NIT | First Round win over Jacksonville |
| 2009 | NIT | Second Round win over Miami |
| 2009 | NIT | Quarterfinal loss to Penn State |
| 2008 | NIT | First Round win over San Diego State |
| 2008 | NIT | Second Round win over Creighton |
| 2008 | NIT | Quarterfinal win over Arizona State |
| 2008 | NIT | Semifinal loss to Massachusetts |
| 2007 | NCAA | Round of 64 win over Jackson State |
| 2007 | NCAA | Round of 32 win over Purdue |
| 2007 | NCAA | Regional Semifinal win over Butler |
| 2007 | NCAA | National Semifinal win over UCLA |
| 2007 | NCAA | National Final win over Ohio State |
| 2007 | NCAA | Regional Final win over Oregon |
*all team stats through 3/10
