Odds for Florida’s opening game against Prairie View A&M have been anywhere between 33.5 and 35.5 points ever since the Panthers won their First Four game on Wednesday. If the final odds settle at 35.5 points, it will be the single biggest spread of an NCAA Tournament game in 25 years.
There really is no reason why this game shouldn’t be a 30+ point blowout and Gator fans shouldn’t have to stress too much tonight, but day one of March Madness brings a warning that Florida better be ready to bring its A-Game or it could turn into a long night in Tampa.
Florida is favored by 35.5 points
Even if the shots don’t fall from deep for Florida, Prairie View is an awful rebounding team that doesn’t know how to defend without fouling. This game could wind up 100-60, and no one would blink. “Worst” case scenario still feels like a 20+ point win, with something closer to 91-68.
But day one of March Madness should be a wakeup call to the Gators, where both No. 1 seeds who took the court didn’t exactly get out of round one without a sweat. Michigan was up just 50-46 against Howard at halftime, and it wasn’t until there were 14 minutes left in the game that they created genuine daylight to eventually cruise to the win.
Then there is Duke, who had to stage a massive 2nd half comeback to avoid an all-time upset against Siena. Frankly, Duke should have lost, but Siena missed several wide-open looks to kill their upset bid. At halftime, Duke even admitted they thought their opening game would be a cakewalk.
So in one breath, we know Todd Golden is going to set a standard that had Florida coming out swinging from the opening tip off. But there is that nagging voice in the head that will ask “What happens if Florida can't hit anything from three?”
The Panthers can’t defend the three to save their life, but Florida still has to be able to hit those open shots.
Since Vegas seems to know best, we are going to go with a Florida 95-60 victory.