Are the Florida Gators Ever Going to Get Their Due?
The Florida Gators are good. You might not know this however because for some odd reason they seem to get overlooked by the so-called “bracketologists” all the time. If we did one of those “blind resumes” and I gave you a team that is 17-2, 6-0 and has wins over the Florida State Seminoles, Kansas Jayhawks, Memphis Tigers, Richmond Spiders, Arkansas Razorbacks on the road (ask the Kentucky Wildcats if that is difficult) and the Tennessee Volunteers and whose only losses were on the road at the Wisconsin Badgers and UConn Huskies by a combined seven points, would you think that team should be a one seed as of right now?
How about if I also told you that same team was without their senior point guard at the end of both losses, (actually without him for the entire game against Wisconsin) and was without its leading scorer at Arkansas? Sounding like a one seed yet?
We all know that past performance and reputation play a role in seedings whether the NCAA likes to admit it or not. The teams like Kentucky, the Duke Blue Devils, the North Carolina Tar Heels, the Kansas Jayhawks, and the Michigan State Spartans get the nod over other schools with a similar resume. Whether it is human nature or a bias towards “name” schools, there is a reason those teams get top seeds year after year. So when does Florida get their invite to this party? All they’ve done since 2006 is win two national championships, go to five Elite Eights, and win 20+ every single year. They even had two down years when they had to rebuild and made a quarterfinal run and a semifinal run in the NIT. Obviously these guys know how to play in the post season.
Yet, looking at many so-called experts brackets right now, the Jayhawks are a number one while the Gators are a two. Why? The Jayhawks have lost four games, one of them to the Gators in a 67-61 game that was not as close as it sounds. But Kansas is Kansas and that is why they seem to get the love. But in that game Joel Embiid, who is now the odds on favorite to become the first pick in the NBA Draft this summer, had six points and six rebounds in 30 minutes in that game. You think that was a fluke?
Last night the Volunteers had 37 points when coach Billy Donovan emptied his bench in the final minute. Yes that is right, 37 points in about 39 minutes. This is the same UT team that went to Kentucky and lost 74-66 and the unbeaten Wichita State Shockers and lost 70-61. They also pummeled the ACC contending Virginia Cavaliers 82-57.
So how is Florida not a number one seed? We do not know. Perhaps it is because they are form the SEC. The SEC has the reputation of being a “football conference” and sometimes this hurts them with basketball. But the SEC has won three of the last eight NCAA Tournaments. maybe it’s time they started getting some respect from the basketball community.
Of course, there are only folks speculating out there and there is a ton of games left to be played. For instance, Florida still has two games to play against Kentucky, a game at the Ole Miss Rebels, one at Tennessee and the SEC Tournament still to go. By March Madness time they could be lucky to be a four if things go wrong. But if the tournament for some odd reason were moved up to next week due to impending emergency, ad if Kansas was made a number one over the Gators, what is going on here?
