Unlike the majority of the coaches in the NCAA Tournament, who have been preparing for their opening games since Selection Sunday, University of Florida’s Mike White and his staff had to wait around until Tuesday night’s First Four game to find out their first-round opponent.
It turned out to be No. 11 seed St. Bonaventure, a mid-major team the sixth-seeded Gators actually know a bit about. The Bonnies (26-7) advanced to Thursday’s late game (10:10 p.m., truTV) against the Gators (20-12) by beating UCLA 65-58 in Dayton, Ohio.
Florida beat St. Bonaventure 73-66 in Lakeland last season, and White was impressed.