Gators’ Journey Through SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament

Regular-season SEC play finished with the slate of games Saturday, including Florida’s win against Ole Miss.

The SEC Tournament bracket is set and the Gators earned a double bye to the quarterfinals as the second seed in the tournament.

Fighting for Survival

Depending on results of earlier rounds, the Gators (27-4, 14-4 SEC) will face either LSU, Mississippi State or Missouri. The LSU Tigers (14-17, 3-15) will play against the Mississippi State Bulldogs (20-11, 8-10) in the first round of the tournament on Wednesday. The winner of that game will move on to the second round where the Missouri Tigers (21-10, 10-8) will be waiting to face their first opponent of the tournament. The winner of that game will then face the Gators in the quarterfinals at 7 p.m. Friday.

Missouri upset Florida in Gainesville on Jan. 14. It was only a one-point loss (83-82), but the Gators allowed Caleb Grill to score 22 points and had 13 turnovers. Missouri is ranked No. 15 in the nation, but has lost three games in a row. It could end up being a rematch in the Gators’ first game of the tournament.

Another team that got a double bye into the quarterfinals are the Alabama Crimson Tide, who the Gators just played against last week. If both the Gators and Crimson Tide win their quarterfinals matchups, we would see a rematch in the semifinals. For that to happen, the Crimson Tide need to win their quarterfinal matchup against either the Oklahoma Sooners, Georgia Bulldogs or Kentucky Wildcats.

Settling The Score

Of the four teams who got double byes to the quarterfinals, only one has beaten Florida this year, and that’s the Tennessee Volunteers. After demolishing the Volunteers by 30 points at home, the Gators then fell to the Volunteers in Knoxville. If the Volunteers and Gators are able to win their matchups, we would see a rematch to settle the score in the SEC Championship game.

The Gators had success in SEC play and can bring momentum into March Madness with a good showing in the conference tournament.

Up Next

Florida plays its first SEC tournament game in the quarterfinals on Friday. It airs on the SEC Network and tips off at 7 p.m.