After a close call in the SEC tournament, Florida enters the NCAA tournament as the No. 1 overall seed, defending a 26-game win streak that started before conference play in the regular season. The Gators went undefeated in the SEC during the regular season and followed that up in the conference tournament. Now they start their quest for a championship which begins against No. 16 Albany.
Florida is the favorite in this game by 21.5 points. Albany made it into the tournament after defeating Mount St. Marys on Tuesday for the First Four. According to ESPN, No. 1 seeds are 116-0 in their opening games since the tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985. The Gators have no intentions of letting that stat end on Thursday.
Albany might not be the team that can pull the Cinderella upset against Florida. The Great Danes play a low game and struggle with turnovers. They also do not shoot the three very well. The Gators will likely feast on their supposed strengths. A No. 16 seed has never beaten a No. 1 seed in the history of the tournament. Playing on short rest is certainly not a good time to start.
The Gators will be well rested after grinding out the final games of the SEC tournament. The road to winning the conference was not easy as both the Tennessee Volunteers and Kentucky Wildcats gave them a game. Point guard Kasey Hill is expected to be limited with a turf toe injury. He averages 5.5 points and 3.1 assists per game.
The Gators defense could make this game a lopsided blowout. Florida is holding top opponents to 57.9 points per game which is third best in the nation. Scottie Wilbekin who was just named SEC player of the year will carry the offense, averaging 13 points per game.
