GAINESVILLE, Fla. — There’s only one way for No. 4 Florida to guarantee itself a top seed in the NCAA Tournament: win the Southeastern Conference Tournament.
And coach Todd Golden badly wants one of those No. 1 seeds in the NCAA field, which will be announced Sunday.
“We’re going to go try to win this thing,” he said Wednesday. “We’re going to give it all we got.”
Florida (27-4, 14-4 SEC) will play Missouri, LSU or Mississippi State in the quarterfinals Friday in Nashville, Tennessee. The second-seeded Gators enter the tournament as one of the hottest teams in the league, winners of nine of their last 10.
It’s not enough, though. Florida appears to have a tenuous grip on the final No. 1 seed, behind Duke, Auburn and Houston. Losing in the SEC tourney would put that at risk, especially if Alabama or Tennessee ends up cutting down the nets inside Bridgestone Arena.
“To be honest, I think it’s really important to us,” Golden said. “But at the same time, I’m not sure how big of a difference our path would truly be whether we’re the third or fourth 1 seed, or the first or second 2 seed. …
“We definitely want the 1 seed, don’t get me wrong. At this point, I think we’re in a really good spot. Pride-wise, we’re going to do everything we can to get this 1 seed. But I’m confident in our potential, whether we end up getting it or we’re a high 2.”
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