Florida Gators Earn No. 7 Seed in 2021 NCAA Tournament Bracket

The Florida Gators are settled into their seed for the 2021 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament.

After an eventful - for better and for worse - regular season followed by a third-round exit from the SEC Tournament, the Florida Gators (14-9) have earned the No. 7 seed in the 2021 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. Florida will face No. 10 Virginia Tech (15-6) in the round of 64, set to tip-off on Friday, Mar. 19, time and location to be announced.

UF finds itself in the South Region, notably alongside No. 1 seed Baylor (22-2), No. 3 Arkansas (22-6), and No. 8 North Carolina (18-10). The winner of Florida vs. Virginia Tech will face the winner of No. 2 Ohio State (21-0) and No. 15 Oral Roberts (16-10). 

Running their offense through second-year, All-SEC guard Tre Mann, the Gators look to improve their presence in the post and on the glass in order to match his production from the perimeter. Mann has been on a tear over Florida's last six games, shooting 67 percent from the floor with four games of 20+ points in a row. Mann also posted a career-high 30 points in Florida's loss to Tennessee on Saturday.

However, starting big-men Colin Castleton and Omar Payne have been ineffective more often than not in recent games. Castleton has not connected on more than three field goals in the past four contests, while Payne has just ten rebounds combined over his last five. To make matters worse, Payne was ejected for a flagrant II foul after throwing his elbow at Tennessee forward John Fulkerson.

Mann could also use some more structural help in the backcourt from fellow guard Tyree Appleby. Although the former Cleveland State transfer has a knack for flashy plays, his reckless nature has shortened the number of offensive possessions when they need to be lengthened, directly resulting in the Gators' inefficiency scoring the basketball.

Florida has compiled a 5-3 March Madness record under head coach Mike White, previously clinching a spot in the bracket in 2017, 2019, and 2020. The Gators advanced to the Elite 8 in White's first playoff run, but UF has since been eliminated in the round of 32 in consecutive years.

The NCAA Tournament did not take place in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.