Maryland vs. Florida in the Sweet 16: Game time, TV and point spread for Terps-Gators in NCAA Tournament
For the first time in a decade, Maryland basketball is Sweet 16-bound. After escaping Colorado State thanks to Derik Queen's buzzer-beating jumper, the Terps will face No. 1 seed Florida for a chance to play in the Elite Eight for the first since the national championship run in 2002.
For the first time in a decade, Maryland basketball is Sweet 16-bound. After escaping Colorado State thanks to Derik Queen's buzzer-beating jumper, the Terps will face No. 1 seed Florida for a chance to play in the Elite Eight for the first since the national championship run in 2002.
Maryland and Florida will tip off on TBS at 7:39 p.m. Thursday in San Francisco. Florida, one of the top-ranked national title contenders, opened as a 5.5-point favorite and the spread quickly climbed to 6.5 points. Per Covers.com, 73% of early bettors had picked the Gators as of early Monday morning.
The winner will advance to an Elite Eight matchup on Saturday against the winner of third-seeded Texas Tech and No. 10 seed Arkansas, which upset No. 2 St. Johns. The Gators (32-4), ranked third in the AP Poll, have won nine of their past 10 games, including an SEC championship game win over sixth-ranked Tennessee.
Queen scored a team-high 17 points and made seven of 12 shots, the last of which was one of the biggest for Maryland in years.
"I said, 'Who wants the ball?' Because sometimes you can draw something up for a guy that maybe doesn't want the basketball," Maryland coach Kevin Willard said. "And his exact words: 'I want the MF ball.' So, once he said that, it was a pretty simple decision. And I could see everyone's body language kind of perk up a little bit because he was so confident in the fact that he wanted the basketball. So, it was just a simple zipper, give him the basketball and let him go to work."
Maryland is 2-2 all-time against Florida, including a recent win. The Terps beat the Gators in Brooklyn in 2021, 70-68, led by 19 points apiece from Eric Ayala and Fatts Russell led the Terps with 19 points apiece Maryland went to Gainesville and beat the No. 1 ranked Gators in overtime, 69-68, in 2003.
Nik Caner Medley posted 22 points and 13 rebounds, and John Gilchrist added 18.
