Florida Basketball is off to San Francisco to take on Maryland in the Sweet 16 on Thursday at 7:39 PM. The Gators are seven-point favorites, but there are a ton of metrics where Maryland matches up well with Florida. On paper, the only three weaknesses for Maryland are that they could do better at finishing at the rim, are vulnerable on the defensive glass, and do not go deep on their bench.
It's the third part that has earned them the nickname the Crab Five, and of their starters, there are some names Gator fans need to know ahead of Thursday.
Florida Basketball: Crab People
Derik Queen is your headliner for Maryland. He went viral after hitting a buzzer-beater against Colorado State in the, but his impact on Maryland is more than just a one-shining-moment phenomenon.
Queen is 6'10" and is averaging 16.2 points per game, along with 9.09 rebounds per game. His game is a more effective version of Alex Condon's, and Queen has been starting to shoot it from deep a bit more, including two made threes against Colorado State.
Like Florida, Maryland has multiple players averaging over ten points per game. Guard Ja'Kobi Gillespie is averaging 14.6 points per game, is averaging over 40% from deep, and is 85% from the free throw line. Gillespie is also an effective passer who is solid on the defensive side.
Julian Reese and Selton Miguel also average double digits in points, though Reese is the most prone from Maryland to get into foul trouble.
The problem for Maryland is that if Reese fouls out, Tafara Gapare is the only other player with size they even pretend to use, and he has seen more than four minutes in a game just once in Maryland's past ten games.
What Thursday will come down to is whether or not the depth for the Gators can outlast Queen and Gillespie, and if Florida can at all get into the bench for Maryland, they should feel good about their chances.