The Round of 64 has begun in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament.
The No. 7 Gators are set to take the floor in March Madness against No. 10 Colorado at 4:30 p.m. In Florida’s 22nd tournament appearance, it’s a first under the leadership of Todd Golden.
This year’s team is Florida’s highest-scoring in program history, averaging 85.1 points per game. And over the last six weeks, Florida has gained four top 25 wins. But a key piece will be missing for the Gators in this game.
Florida’s 7-foot-1 center Micah Handlogten will not be playing in Indianapolis after sustaining a broken leg in the starting minutes of the Southeastern Conference tournament final on March 17.
“Dealing with some adversity obviously without Micah,” Florida Head Coach Todd Golden said. “But he’s back with us which was obviously a big lift for the guys yesterday.”
Though he won’t play, Handlogten joined the Gators in the Indianapolis locker room. Golden said having the sophomore transfer from Marshall is giving the Gators something greater to play for.
“I feel like that gave us a little juice and had a good practice yesterday before we left,” he said.
Now they face a Colorado squad with momentum on their side. The Buffaloes enter the first round fresh off a play-in win against Boise State.
With the loss of a tall presence on the court, Florida has to deal with a starting front court from Colorado that averages over 25 points per game and over 12 rebounds.
Florida guard Will Richard said it’s important they play the way they have all year. “Playing together, being the most physical team out there. Doing things that we are good at,” Richard said. “Just coming out and being aggressive the whole game. Having a complete 40 minute game.”
Golden said freshman Alex Condon is expected to carry some of the load, but freshman Thomas Haugh will also see a bigger chunk of time on the court as this Gators squad makes its debut in this year’s big dance.