Florida head coach Billy Donovan answers questions at a news conference for the NCAA college basketball tournament in Orlando, Fla., Wednesday, March 19, 2014.More often than not, the NCAA men’s basketball tournament champion needs at least one close victory along the way.
Florida does not lack for experience in that category.
Billy Donovan’s Gators are the tournament’s top overall seed and will open play shortly after 4 this afternoon against 16th-seeded Albany, which outlasted Mount St. Mary’s in Tuesday night’s First Four game. Florida is not expected to be challenged today, but some last-minute thrillers may be right around the corner.
“We’ve been in a lot of those games this year,” Donovan said earlier this week on a teleconference. “I think that in every game you play, you gain more experience.”
The 32-2 Gators won all 21 games this year against Southeastern Conference opposition but were in more tight games as the season transpired. In racing out to a 12-0 league start, Florida had seven double-digit victories and won 11 by six or more points, with the lone exception being an 84-82 overtime win at Arkansas on Jan. 11.