NCAAB: #10 Colorado vs #7 Florida Odds, and Picks (Mar 22)

• Colorado continued their hot play against Boise State in Dayton, winning 60-53.
• Florida bowed out in the SEC Championship Game, after losing 86-67 to Auburn.
• This will be the first meeting between these two teams in their program histories.

The NCAA Tournament is officially underway! Let’s take a look at this matchup between the Colorado Buffaloes and the Florida Gators. The Buffaloes took down Boise State in their First Four matchup, and will aim to keep winning against red-hot Florida.

How to Watch

• TBS

Preview

Colorado managed to keep rolling in their First Four game against Boise State, advancing to this first-round matchup with Florida. The Buffaloes had won 8 straight games leading up to their loss to Oregon in the Pac-12 title game, but never got much respect from the committee, landing in as one of the last four teams. They’ll aim to continue proving the doubters wrong, led by a future NBA Lottery pick in KJ Simpson. He’ll be looking to exploit Florida’s subpar defense in this matchup.

Florida heated up down the stretch as well, going 6-3 in their last 9 games. They picked up two wins over Alabama in that span, showcasing their dynamic offense by reaching over 100 points in both games. The Gators offense is top-15 the nation, but they also have a defense that ranks just #86. They’ll need to overcome their defensive woes to hold off a Buffaloes team that should test them on both sides of the ball. Iona transfer Walter Clayton Jr. has made a huge impact as Florida’s leading-scorer.

Prediction

This is a matchup featuring two red-hot teams. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the winner of this game pull off an upset on Sunday and make the Sweet 16. I’m leaning towards taking Florida in this game, but it’ll depend entirely on if their defense can find a way to slow KJ Simpson and the Buffaloes down. The Gators have faced enough tough opponents to have a game plan figured out for teams like Colorado, so I see them pulling away late in the game and advancing.

NCAAB Picks:

• Florida 78, Colorado 73 (FLA -2.0)