Tampa subregional

UF handed a shot at redemption

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© St. Petersburg Times
published March 17, 2003

As the lights dimmed and the season was turning dark, a most amazing thing happened. Florida became potent once again.

All is not just forgiven, it's forgotten, too. Ignore the disappointing end to the regular season. Slough off the embarrassment in the conference tournament. The Gators are back in the game.

And, by gosh, they're looking like Final Four contenders.

Has a team ever received a greater reward for going two weeks without winning? Has a 6-5 record down the stretch ever seemed so inconsequential?

The NCAA selection committee took measure of the victory-starved Gators on Sunday and decided they still looked like heavy favorites.

How else do you explain a No. 2 seed, a short bus trip to the St. Pete Times Forum and what looks like a pretty favorable bracket?

"I know people were saying, 'You're going to drop to a four or a five seed,' " Florida coach Billy Donovan said. "I never felt that way. This team won 24 games. That's a lot of games."

Say what you will about the selection committee having the wisdom and foresight to consider a season's worth of games instead of the more immediate past. But at least acknowledge the Gators are swimming in karma.

As a No. 2 seed, Florida technically is considered one of the top eight teams in the tournament. Those other No. 1 and 2 seeds went a combined 17-4 in their final three games. Florida went 0-3.

Now, Donovan rightfully will point out that the losses were by a combined seven points. And that two were against top-ranked teams.

Just try explaining that to Mike Krzyzewski.

Duke won the same number of games as Florida, won the ACC tournament and still ended up as the No. 3 seed in the West Region in Salt Lake City.

The committee made some curious choices, although no one around here should be complaining. Not only did Tampa Bay get the Gators, it also has the potential for some interesting first-round games.

Because of the pod seeding concept, the Times Forum will get a pair of No. 7 vs. No. 10 seeds (Michigan State vs. Colorado and St. Joseph's vs. Auburn) in the first round. No spot in the field has been better for surprises. In 14 of the past 24 meetings, the No. 10 seed has come away with the upset.

There also is the potential for a Florida-Michigan State game in a rematch of the 2000 national championship.

"We're in a good position right now," Donovan said.

The coach said he had not had time to study the bracket, but it would be difficult for Donovan to find much to nitpick.

Kentucky and Arizona are considered the nation's best teams, and Florida would not run into either until the national championship game.

The Gators also have the benefit of two poor road teams (Michigan State or Colorado) as potential second-round opponents.

The RPI rankings supposedly are the Morse code used to decipher brackets. These are the rankings the NCAA selection committee studies to make its at-large selections and to determine the seeds.

If they are to be trusted, these rankings bode well for Florida. The South is, by far, the easiest region. Based on last week's RPI, the South has the fewest top 10 teams of the four regions. It also has the fewest top 25 teams.

All of which means the Gators have been given the opportunity to do something special. And Donovan is not exactly lowering the bar.

Unlike last season, when he questioned his team's toughness going into the NCAA Tournament, Donovan is suggesting anything is possible in 2003.

"Being (an assistant) at Kentucky for five years, I know the expectations levels placed on those guys every single year. That's what I've tried to do here, is create a level of expectations and not downplay it," Donovan said. "When you're trying to build, you have to try to reach to the highest level. When you try to do that you're going to have disappointments along the way."

Donovan figures the Gators already have learned from their disappointments this season. Unlike some players last season, he said, this group seems to treat losing as an unacceptable option.

Maybe, in the end, the high seed won't matter.

Maybe Matt Bonner's sore foot will keep him off the court at key moments and the lack of inside strength will be exposed.

Maybe the past two weeks, when Florida repeatedly failed to come through at key moments, is more indicative of this team's true nature.

Maybe freshmen such as Anthony Roberson and Matt Walsh have simply grown weary after the longest season of their lives.

Or, maybe, the selection committee knew what it was doing.

"I want our guys reaching for the stars," Donovan said.

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