Gators' Starting Point in Tournament Shifts in Latest Bracketology Updates

The Florida Gators continue to move around in the tournament projections. In the latest update to ESPN’s Bracketology, the Gators remain a No. 2 seed but have pivoted back over from starting the tournament in Raleigh, N.C. and back to Cleveland. They would play in the East Region (Newark).

They would take on the automatic qualifying team UNC Asheville. They leave North Carolina just to play a team from that state. Gotta love how these tournaments are seated.

You have to love the irony of moving west to be placed in the East Region too.

The Bulldogs would be the No. 15 seed and the winners of the Big South Conference.

Bleacher Report’s Bracketology also places Florida in Cleveland in the East Region. However, they would take on No. 15 Towson. The Tigers would presumably be the automatic qualifier from the Coastal (formerly Colonial) Athletic Association.

This update in the bracket came after the 20-point loss to Tennessee. The dominant win over Vanderbilt will count toward the next update next week.

Bleacher Report still ranks the Gators as the sixth-best team in the country and the second-best second seed behind Houston. They were fifth last week.

With the win over the Commodores, the Gators are 19-3 overall and 6-3 in the SEC. This is good enough for fourth place in the conference. They’ve posted a 4-3 record in Quad 1 matchups, according to the NET Rankings. Florida remains the No. 5 team overall in their rankings.

Florida will receive arguably its greatest challenge of the season in the upcoming matchup on Saturday. They will take on the consensus No. 1 team in the country, Auburn. The Tigers have won their last 14 games are just pounced Oklahoma 98-70.

The Gators will have to topple the top team in the nation in a tough environment. The Gators are 3-2 on the road. Apart from the blowout loss to Tennessee and the 13-point win over Florida State, road games have been tight. For example, they lost to Kentucky by six and beat South Carolina by one. The win over Arkansas was by eight.

Ideally, this means they’ll come ready to play at Neville Arena. The status of Walter Clayton Jr. on Saturday will undoubtedly be a determining factor.