Heading into the finals of the SEC Tournament, Florida Basketball was still being doubted as a potential one-seed in the NCAA Tournament. Tennessee fans insisted that if they won, they should be seeded ahead of the Gators for the final top-line seed on Selection Sunday.
Todd Golden and crew had one a simple message, paraphrased, of course, that the Volunteers need to sit down and be humble as Florida won their first SEC Tournament championship since 2014 and reminded everyone why they could win it all in San Antonio this April.
Florida Basketball: I Am Legend
After the initial flurry of long-range shots from Tennessee, it became apparent that Tennessee had minimal answers inside for Florida. If the Gators could just maintain some level of integrity along the three-point line, they were going to be okay.
Sure enough, as much as Tennessee tried to mean mug their way into the heads of the Gators, Florida kept to their game and wasn't rattled by anything thrown their way.
Whether it was the Volunteers themselves, the pro-Tennessee crowd, or the refs, it felt like, at times, it was 20 v 1.
But the Gators said they'll go 1 v 20 and smacked back any attempt Tennessee threw their way to get into the game.
Denzel Aberdeen hit a long-range three heading into halftime, and any hope Tennesee had at winning the game never materialized. Even when Tennessee tried to make some half-hearted runs in the second half, Florida responded in kind and the end result was never in doubt.
Walter Clayton had 22 points, Will Richard had 17, and three more Gators had double digits as ESPN put it best as the clock hit zero:
Tennessee came in as one of the best defensive squads in the country, and Florida still put 86 points on them.
Forget the conversation on whether or not Tenessee deserved a one seed had they won; it is highway robbery at this point if Florida doesn't get priority over Auburn to play in Atlanta for the Sweet 16 and Elite 8.
The final chapter for Florida will be written in the next three weeks, but don't gloss over the penultimate chapter, as the Gators are the 2025 SEC Tournament champions.