Selection Sunday wasn't something that Todd Golden and the rest of Florida Basketball had to stress about. After beating Tennessee to win the SEC Tournament, Florida knew it would be a one-seed, and the only thing left to watch was who else would be in their bracket.
It's with that in mind that three things stood out as the bracket got announced.
Florida Basketball Wasn't Rewarded For Winning The SEC Tournament
Bracketology experts seemed determined to keep painting a picture where Florida could get bounced from a one seed had it not won the SEC Tournament.
That always felt silly given Florida's regular season success, but what was even more apparent from the bracket is that the SEC Tournament didn't matter in terms of improving Florida's seeding.
Despite losing three of their last four games, Auburn was slotted in as the number one overall seed, while Florida was fourth. That may seem like semantics, but it does mean for the Sweet 16/Elite 8, the Gators have to fly out to San Francisco, where Auburn gets to stay close to home in Atlanta.
Date With The Back-To-Back Champs
Assuming Florida doesn't get tripped up by Norfolk State in their opener, the Gators would play the winner of Oklahoma versus UConn. Typically, the tournament committee tries to avoid conference rematches, but since the SEC got 14 teams into the tournament, that was hard to accomplish.
If the Sooners prevail, the Gators will feel confident, given Florida beat Oklahoma 85-63 earlier this year.
If it is UConn awaiting, it would create an intriguing matchup but on paper this is not the same UConn team that has won back-to-back national titles. UConn is a good rebounding team that moves the ball well, but they don't force turnovers and have been getting gashed from three all season long.
The Bracket Is Manageable
There are some brand names along the way that will cause Florida to pay attention, but as a whole, this is a manageable bracket for the Gators.
If Florida makes it to the Sweet 16 they realistically would face the winner of Memphis versus Maryland. Both of those teams can score, but both are susceptible on the glass.
We highlighted the three-seed Texas Tech as a team Florida might not want to see just because they play such a contrasting style to the Gators, but after watching Florida bully ball everyone at the SEC Tournament once their opponent ran out of big men, its a matchup Florida should like.
The two-seed St. John's will come into the tournament flying high. It's a pick your poison moment where the only other team Florida could have seen as the two-seed was Michigan State.
The Red Storm press and create a lot of steals, but they aren't actually a good shooting team, and that would be a matchup dependent on Florida's ability to protect the ball.