Pendulum of respect for Florida Basketball back on the upswing as March Madness looms

Florida closes out the regular season against Ole Miss at 6 PM
Mar 5, 2025; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Florida Gators head coach Todd Golden directs his team against the Alabama Crimson Tide during the second half at Coleman Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Will McLelland-Imagn Images
Mar 5, 2025; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Florida Gators head coach Todd Golden directs his team against the Alabama Crimson Tide during the second half at Coleman Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Will McLelland-Imagn Images | Will McLelland-Imagn Images

The long and winding road of Florida basketball's regular season comes to an end tonight as the Gators wrap up SEC play against Ole Miss. No matter what happens tonight, Florida has wrapped up the number two seed heading into the SEC Tournament, though they still have their sights set on being a one-seed in the NCAA Tournament.

However, while the national dialogue surrounding the Gators has been inconsistent in 2025, slowly but surely, the national media is coming around to the idea that Florida might be the team that winds up cutting down the nets in San Antonio to end the season.

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We noted earlier this week how voters in the AP Poll had zero consistency when it came to the Gators. Florida was dropped to 5th in the poll behind Tennessee, even though Florida was ahead of the Volunteers in the literal SEC standings.

That's on top of bracketology experts trying their hardest to drop the Gators off the one-seed line even before their loss to Georgia, but after Wednesday night's win on the road at Alabama, it has become harder and harder for national pundits to ignore the Gators.

While most of the dialogue this year has been about Duke and Auburn, the reality is that Florida has as good a shot as any to win six straight games and raise a banner to begin next year.

When one thinks about the four games Florida has lost this year, teams have had to either turn into Steph Curry or bank on a game plan that Florida is going to miss wide-open shots. Seldom has Florida had to rely on miracles or non-sustainable play to emerge as the victors during the 2024/25 campaign.

March Madness offers zero guarentees, hence why it is March Madness. But Florida has better odds than most, and there is still room to hop on the bandwagon prior to the start of the Big Dance.

Schedule

Schedule