After riding the wave of a 12-game winning streak, Florida saw its momentum come to a screeching halt as the Gators were bounced from the SEC Tournament 91-74 by Vanderbilt. The biggest concern for Florida as it gets ready for the NCAA Tournament is that its three-point shooting woes returned, and against Vanderbilt, they also saw the turnover bug make a comeback.
But if one wants their glass to be half full, there are some good omens Florida can point to from getting eliminated from its conference tournament.
Florida eliminated from the SEC Tournament
Had Florida gone all the way and won the SEC Tournament, that would have pumped its winning streak to 14 games. While impressive, it’s not a good omen to actually go on and win the national title. Not since 1976, when Indiana went undefeated, has a team entered the NCAA Tournament with a winning streak longer than 13 games and gone on to win the national title.
The good news for Florida, which would've run its win streak to 14 with an SEC title ...
— Kyle Tucker (@KyleTuckerCBB) March 14, 2026
No national champ since unbeaten Indiana in 1976 has entered the NCAA Tournament with a streak longer than 13 games. Only four champs the last 50 years entered with double-digit win streaks.
In addition, if one wants a reminder that conference tournaments aren’t an automatic indicator of March Madness success, five of the last ten national champions were eliminated in the semifinals of their respective conference tournaments.
Now, obviously, losing to Vanderbilt doesn’t unlock some secret box that has a national title ring in it. Florida proved last season that you can win your conference tournament and win the national title. It’s more so a reminder that conference tournaments tend to be a bit finicky compared to March Madness. Teams are far more familiar with each other in a conference tournament versus the NCAA Tournament, which matters when playing the second game of a weekend.
Florida will learn its fate later today as to whether it's a No. 1 or No. 2 seed. This week was framed by Bracketology people as a battle between Florida and UConn, where the winner of their respective conference tournaments would get the final No. 1 seed. UConn got blown out by St. John’s in the Big East finals.
Either way, the odds are strong that Florida is off to Tampa and, assuming it avoids an upset, will be off to Houston for the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight. It’s there that Florida’s season will ultimately be defined.