Florida has a basketball team in the Sweet 16 once again under head coach Billy Donovan. Yes this Gators team is not only very much alive, but if you ask their opponents, they are doing a lot of kicking you know what at the same time.
Many of the opinion makers feel Florida has received a free pass to this next round of games because of Norfolk State's upset of the No. 2-seeded Missouri Tigers. The fact is, if Missouri had won the Norfolk State game, they would have had to defeat a rowdy bunch of reptiles that are on a mission to end up in New Orleans at the Final Four.
The Gators have not only exceeded a lot of expectations, but they are also in a position to upset a lot of other peoples’ prognostications. Very few think Florida can go any further. It certainly isn’t going to get easier, but it is well within the capabilities of this team to break a lot of fans’ tournament brackets and win the next two games.
Of the 16 remaining teams, only 10 of them were among the top 16 ranked teams entering the tournament. Ohio University, Xavier, Cincinnati, Louisville, N.C. State and Florida were not among the nation’s top 16 when play started last week. Of these teams, only Florida and Louisville were in the top 25 before the tournament began.
So you don’t have to be one of the best teams in the country to necessarily win the championship. You just have to be the best team in six games. Right now, Florida has been the best team in two games, and they just need to do this four more times.
So what makes us think the Gators have it in them to keep winning?
Foremost they have a coach who has been there before. In fact, three times Billy Donovan has put a Gator team in the championship game. Donovan has developed a personal understanding of how you manage a group of young people through an already grueling 35 games in preparation for a postseason championship run. His message is communicated consistently, and more importantly he has the players’ respect to value what is being said.
Outstanding basketball teams, not necessarily great players, win the big games. Florida basketball under Billy Donovan has always been about the team. He passionately tries to recruit the best players, but he will only recruit those who want to win as a team.
That doesn’t always mean they will win every game. In fact, the past three Florida teams that played for a national championship lost seven, six and five games in that order before entering the NCAA tournament.
This is Donovan’s sixth group to play in the Sweet 16, and with 10 losses, this group has the most defeats of any of his teams prior to getting to this juncture of the tournament. But it is a team that has shown uncommon resiliency by playing a difficult schedule and handling adversity as part of the competition equation.
Donovan has never taken his team’s eye off the biggest prize, and he has his players believing it is within the realm of possibilities.
The Florida players have a high basketball IQ. They make successful split-second decisions in timing their movements on the floor and compromise defenses with unselfish responses. Throughout this season, the team has made difficult adjustments in their style of play on both ends of the floor and handled the changes effectively.
They are extremely well conditioned and believe they can outlast anyone. The in-season and offseason conditioning program is paying enormous benefits as they battle through injuries and sickness to empty the energy tank each time they leave the floor. This team has paid a significant price to be one of the best conditioned teams in the country.
Four of the five starters and six key players have been to this point in the postseason before. Last year’s heartbreaking loss to Butler denied a trip to the Final Four and has been eating at this team for a whole year.
When the first day of practice began in October, Erving Walker, Kenny Boynton, Erik Murphy, Will Yeguete, Scottie Wilbekin and Patric Young could still taste that bitter defeat in New Orleans to end last season. They have a mission to return to the same site with a better conclusion this time around.
Finally and maybe somewhat fortuitously, they feel no pressure to succeed. There are no expectations for Florida to win, and the players seem to relish the underdog role. The way things are shaking out, all of their remaining opponents should be a higher-seeded team.
It’s always tempting to look at the strengths of your opponent and compare your own team’s shortcomings.
I was able to broadcast both of Florida’s previous meetings against Marquette, the first time in Jacksonville in 1976 and again the next season in Milwaukee. Florida lost by 3 in 1976 to an Al McGuire coached team that won the national championship. The next year Florida lost 81-67 in Milwaukee arena. Bo Ellis had 26 points for the Warriors in one of the coldest buildings I have ever experienced a game of basketball.
On both occasions the name on the front of the Marquette jersey was a bigger obstacle than the team on the floor, because the Gators had very good teams but hadn’t experienced enough success to really believe they could win those games.
This time around the name on the front of the Gators’ jerseys may be part of Marquette’s challenge as well. Florida basketball has experienced unprecedented success over the past 14 years and Marquette will be influenced by that success.
Big East player of the year Jae Crowder is a senior and so is leading scorer Darius Johnson-Odom, but the balance of this team is relatively young with two sophomores and a freshman in the starting lineup.
Florida will have to contend with the Warriors’ length on the perimeter, as five of the last six teams have made less than 30 percent of their 3-point attempts against Marquette.
Florida will present a much different challenge, however, because they have multiple weapons from that distance and the Gators’ ability to spread the floor and make the extra pass will be more potent than anything Marquette has seen this season.
The important message here is that every team has strengths, but you must also be realistic about their weaknesses, and while the Warriors are more than capable of beating very good teams, the Gators with a week to prepare will present a formidable opponent. Look for Florida to take the next step and play for a chance to go the Final Four on Saturday.
