Who Will Florida Play in March Madness? Gators' First Opponent Revealed

At long last, the Florida Gators know who it will face in the Round of 64 in the NCAA Tournament.

With a 67-55 win over Lehigh on Tuesday in the First Four, 16-seed Prairie View A&M will face the one-seed Gators on Friday in Tampa. Guard Donte Horne (25 points, seven rebounds) and forward Corey Wells (17 points, 11 rebounds) led the Panthers, champions of the SWAC Tournament, to the win, the program's first NCAA Tournament win in history.

Friday's matchup will officially mark the second matchup all-time between Florida and Prairie View A&M. The Gators won the first matchup between the programs on Nov. 21, 2006, with a 94-33 win in Gainesville.

Prairie View A&M locks in its FIRST ever NCAA tournament win 👏#MarchMadness @PVAMU_MBB pic.twitter.com/x6iTceWjJb
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 19, 2026

While it remained to be seen at the time who Florida would play, head coach Todd Golden on Monday briefly detailed the hypothetical matchups between either Lehigh or Prairie View A&M.

"We're going to be heavy favorites in that game," Golden said on Monday. "I think they are 284 (Lehigh) and 288 (Prairie View A&M) in KenPom or something like that. So, you know, that's a game we expect to win, regardless of who we play. We got to go do it for 40 (minutes)."

As a one-seed for the second-straight season and SEC regular-season champions, Florida will certainly be a heavy favorite against the Panthers. History also favors Florida with only two 16-seeds in history (UMBC in 2018 and Fairleigh Dickinson in 2023) upsetting a one-seed. Should Florida take care of business on Friday, the Gators will face either nine-seed Iowa or eight-seed Clemson on Sunday.

Golden also briefly detailed both hypothetical matchups in the Round of 32, saying that Iowa is a great offensive team behind guard Bennett Stirtz, while Clemson has one of the "tougher programs in America" behind head coach Brad Brownell.

"That's going to be a really big challenge either way," Golden said. "To be honest, I know who else is in the bracket, but, we're not, at least me personally, going to spend too much time worrying about that until late next Sunday night if we're able to advance."

Florida enters the NCAA Tournament with plenty of talent, plenty of lofty goals and plenty of improvement needed. As the reigning champions and a one-seed in back-to-back seasons, the Gators have a big target on their backs no matter who they play.

"I think to be a one-seed again, first time in Florida basketball history, back-to-back one-seeds, just says a lot about where our program is right now," Golden said. "... I don't think anybody takes it lightly what level of accomplishment (the 1 seed) is. You know, just hearing your name being called as that last one seed is an incredible feeling. We're really proud of it. But now we've got to go and back it up."

The Florida Gators on Saturday clinched at least a share of its first SEC regular-season title. — The Florida Gators enters the NCAA Tournament as SEC regular-season champions. | Kyle Lander / Florida Gators on SI

Meanwhile, after getting bounced by Vanderbilt in the SEC Tournament, Florida also has something to prove heading into the tournament. Golden previously said that losing to the Commodores has presented an opportunity to improve certain facets of the game, such as turnovers and 3-point shooting.

"I don't think we've lost confidence. We got beat. Like, Vanderbilt beat us," Golden said. "They got us, and they did a great job. But I don't think our team's worried that we're not good. I think we're going to be ready to go on Friday."

Tip-off between the Gators and the Panthers is at 9:25 p.m. with television coverage on TNT.