Florida basketball plays in NIT for second straight season: Gators to face UCF in first round

Basketball

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Image Credit: UAA

Losing seven of their final 10 games to end the 2022-23 season, Florida Gators basketball will play in the NIT for the second straight campaign. Last year was the first time Florida played in the NIT since 2016, and now, the Gators will complete in the event for consecutive postseasons for the first time since 2008-09 when the program was rebuilding following back-to-back national championships.

This NIT appearance is the first for head coach Todd Golden, who took his San Francisco Dons to the 2022 NCAA Tournament but did not advance to the postseason in his first two years as a coach.

Florida enters the NIT as a No. 4 seed where it will host UCF on Wednesday at 7 p.m. ET.

Should the Gators advance, they will either face No. 1 Oregon or UC Irvine in second-round action. Also in its section of the bracket are No. 2 Liberty (vs. Villanova) and No. 3 Wisconsin (vs. Bradley). UF will be the last game played in its portion of the bracket, and if it faces other seeded teams, all of those games will be played on the road.

Florida has won a game in each of its last four NIT appearances (2008-09, 2016, 2021) and at least two games in three of those tournaments (2008-09, 2016). UF has not been bounced in the first round of the event since 1998.