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It is the most wonderful time of the year for college basketball fans now that March Madness is officially here. The spring insanity truly began on Selection Sunday, when the 68 participants of this year's NCAA Tournament were announced, setting up the brackets that will be played out over the next few weeks.
With the field of 68 now determined, CBS Sports writer Matt Norland decided to rank every team invited to the Big Dance, including the Florida Gators. In his assessment, he placed the Orange and Blue at No. 4 overall, behind the Duke Blue Devils, Auburn Tigers and Houston Cougars, respectively.
"Take every game into account over the past five weeks and I think you can make the case that no team has played better than Florida. Todd Golden's Gators are an absolute force. The trio of Walter Clayton Jr., Alijah Martin and Will Richard is the best backcourt triumvirate in college basketball," Norlander begins.
"That's not what makes Florida so good, though. The reason the Gators can win a national title is how they cover so much of the floor and adapt to every opponent, every style, no matter what. The 6-11 Alex Condon might be the nation's most underrated player. Thomas Haugh is a 6-9 sophomore with an ORtg of 132.9 and could be the best sixth man in college hoops. And Florida got back 7-1 Micah Handlogten a few weeks back after a broken leg ended his season prior to last year's NCAA Tournament.
"This is Florida's best team in more than a decade and a bona fide title threat. Golden has never won an NCAA Tournament game. How many does he pick up in 2025: three, four or more?"
For what it is worth, the Gators are ranked second in KenPom, third in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll and fourth in the NET rankings. Still, it has become abundantly clear that Golden's gang is easily one of the top four teams in the country and potentially the best, depending on how the tournament turns out.
The Gators open play with a matchup against the No. 16-seed Norfolk State Spartans — who earned an automatic qualifier by seizing the MEAC Tournament title — on Friday, March 21, in Raleigh, North Carolina. Tipoff time is slated for 6:50 p.m. ET and the game will broadcast nationally on TNT.
Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.
This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: 2025 NCAA Tournament bracket rankings for Florida Gators
Continue reading...
With the field of 68 now determined, CBS Sports writer Matt Norland decided to rank every team invited to the Big Dance, including the Florida Gators. In his assessment, he placed the Orange and Blue at No. 4 overall, behind the Duke Blue Devils, Auburn Tigers and Houston Cougars, respectively.
"Take every game into account over the past five weeks and I think you can make the case that no team has played better than Florida. Todd Golden's Gators are an absolute force. The trio of Walter Clayton Jr., Alijah Martin and Will Richard is the best backcourt triumvirate in college basketball," Norlander begins.
"That's not what makes Florida so good, though. The reason the Gators can win a national title is how they cover so much of the floor and adapt to every opponent, every style, no matter what. The 6-11 Alex Condon might be the nation's most underrated player. Thomas Haugh is a 6-9 sophomore with an ORtg of 132.9 and could be the best sixth man in college hoops. And Florida got back 7-1 Micah Handlogten a few weeks back after a broken leg ended his season prior to last year's NCAA Tournament.
"This is Florida's best team in more than a decade and a bona fide title threat. Golden has never won an NCAA Tournament game. How many does he pick up in 2025: three, four or more?"
For what it is worth, the Gators are ranked second in KenPom, third in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll and fourth in the NET rankings. Still, it has become abundantly clear that Golden's gang is easily one of the top four teams in the country and potentially the best, depending on how the tournament turns out.
Next up for Florida
The Gators open play with a matchup against the No. 16-seed Norfolk State Spartans — who earned an automatic qualifier by seizing the MEAC Tournament title — on Friday, March 21, in Raleigh, North Carolina. Tipoff time is slated for 6:50 p.m. ET and the game will broadcast nationally on TNT.
Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.
This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: 2025 NCAA Tournament bracket rankings for Florida Gators
Continue reading...
