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Florida basketball has reached the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2017.
But the No. 1 seed Florida Gators (32-4) don't want the journey to end this weekend.
Florida will face 4-seed Maryland (27-8) on Thursday at the Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif. (7:39 p.m. ET, TBS and TruTV) in a Sweet 16 matchup between SEC and Big Ten programs.
UF rallied from down six points in the second half to escape with a 77-75 win over eight-seed UConn in the Round of 32 on Sunday in Raleigh, N.C., to advance.
"A game like that definitely lets you know that you're ready to take that next step, as a program and as a team," Florida senior guard Will Richard said. "It definitely just helps us be better prepared for the next game, just facing adversity throughout the game and being resilient."
Florida is vying for its sixth Final Four appearance in school history and first since 2014.
Here are three storylines to watch for UF in its matchup with the Terrapins:
The 6-foot-10, 246-pound Queen, a former Montverde Academy standout, earned Big Ten freshman of the year honors, averaging 16.2 points and 9.1 rebounds. Reese, at 6-9 and 252 pounds, is another imposing body inside, who has averaged 13.3 points and 9.1 rebounds with 54 blocks.
Queen made a controversial game-winning shot in Maryland's 72-71 win over 12-seed Colorado State on Sunday, in which some thought he got away with a traveling violation.
UF's frontcourt was outscored 51-18 by UConn and will need to play with more physicality and urgency to keep Queen and Reese from taking over the game inside.
UF has averaged 12.0 turnovers through its first two NCAA Tournament games. Clayton has served his role as a scoring point guard, averaging 23.0 points through UF's first two NCAA Tournament games, but also has posted an assist-to-turnover ratio of three-to-nine in that span.
Florida has been good enough on transition defense to not allow turnovers to hurt them on the other end of the floor, as Norfolk State and Connecticut combined to average just 9.0 points off turnovers in the two games. Still, Florida may need to cut down on its mistakes to advance through the second weekend of the tournament.
Maryland only got two bench points in its win over Colorado State as all five of its starters played 36 minutes or more in the win. The Terrapins play a rotation that's seven-to-eight deep, with forward Jordan Geronimo, an Indiana transfer, as one of the few offensive threats (2.5 ppg, 2.4 apg).
Florida's rotation goes nine deep and its bench ― led by sophomore forward Thomas Haugh and junior guard Denzel Aberdeen ― has factored into its success this season. Haugh sank two clutch free throws late in UF's 77-75 win over UConn and made a hustle play by poking at a ball during a missed free throw scrum, leading to an open Alijah Martin dunk.
Florida 77, Maryland 70: In another grind it out game, Florida will find a way to reach the Elite Eight. Look for forward Alex Condon to bounce back and force Queen to work for his offense, the way he did with Auburn's Johni Broome in UF's 90-81 upset of the Tigers on Feb. 8. Clayton will continue to step up and make big shots.
Kevin Brockway is The Gainesville Sun's Florida beat writer. Contact him at [email protected]. Follow him on X @KevinBrockwayG1
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Florida basketball vs Maryland prediction, pick for March Madness second round
Continue reading...
But the No. 1 seed Florida Gators (32-4) don't want the journey to end this weekend.
Florida will face 4-seed Maryland (27-8) on Thursday at the Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif. (7:39 p.m. ET, TBS and TruTV) in a Sweet 16 matchup between SEC and Big Ten programs.
UF rallied from down six points in the second half to escape with a 77-75 win over eight-seed UConn in the Round of 32 on Sunday in Raleigh, N.C., to advance.
"A game like that definitely lets you know that you're ready to take that next step, as a program and as a team," Florida senior guard Will Richard said. "It definitely just helps us be better prepared for the next game, just facing adversity throughout the game and being resilient."
Florida is vying for its sixth Final Four appearance in school history and first since 2014.
Here are three storylines to watch for UF in its matchup with the Terrapins:
How will Florida basketball deal with the frontcourt combo of Maryland center Derik Queen and forward Julian Reese?
The 6-foot-10, 246-pound Queen, a former Montverde Academy standout, earned Big Ten freshman of the year honors, averaging 16.2 points and 9.1 rebounds. Reese, at 6-9 and 252 pounds, is another imposing body inside, who has averaged 13.3 points and 9.1 rebounds with 54 blocks.
Queen made a controversial game-winning shot in Maryland's 72-71 win over 12-seed Colorado State on Sunday, in which some thought he got away with a traveling violation.
UF's frontcourt was outscored 51-18 by UConn and will need to play with more physicality and urgency to keep Queen and Reese from taking over the game inside.
Can Florida basketball cut down on its turnovers?
UF has averaged 12.0 turnovers through its first two NCAA Tournament games. Clayton has served his role as a scoring point guard, averaging 23.0 points through UF's first two NCAA Tournament games, but also has posted an assist-to-turnover ratio of three-to-nine in that span.
Florida has been good enough on transition defense to not allow turnovers to hurt them on the other end of the floor, as Norfolk State and Connecticut combined to average just 9.0 points off turnovers in the two games. Still, Florida may need to cut down on its mistakes to advance through the second weekend of the tournament.
Can Florida basketball exploit Maryland's lack of depth?
Maryland only got two bench points in its win over Colorado State as all five of its starters played 36 minutes or more in the win. The Terrapins play a rotation that's seven-to-eight deep, with forward Jordan Geronimo, an Indiana transfer, as one of the few offensive threats (2.5 ppg, 2.4 apg).
Florida's rotation goes nine deep and its bench ― led by sophomore forward Thomas Haugh and junior guard Denzel Aberdeen ― has factored into its success this season. Haugh sank two clutch free throws late in UF's 77-75 win over UConn and made a hustle play by poking at a ball during a missed free throw scrum, leading to an open Alijah Martin dunk.
Florida basketball vs Maryland prediction
Florida 77, Maryland 70: In another grind it out game, Florida will find a way to reach the Elite Eight. Look for forward Alex Condon to bounce back and force Queen to work for his offense, the way he did with Auburn's Johni Broome in UF's 90-81 upset of the Tigers on Feb. 8. Clayton will continue to step up and make big shots.
Kevin Brockway is The Gainesville Sun's Florida beat writer. Contact him at [email protected]. Follow him on X @KevinBrockwayG1
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Florida basketball vs Maryland prediction, pick for March Madness second round
Continue reading...
