The No. 7 seed Florida Gators will take on either the No. 10 Boise State Broncos or Colorado Buffaloes in the first round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament. The Broncos and Buffs face off in the First Round to determine who advances. Below we’ll be updating you on the odds for the game once we know the matchup via DraftKings Sportsbook.
The Gators are headed to the Big Dance for the first time since 2021. Florida finished sixth in the SEC in the regular season after several key wins over Alabama, Auburn, and Kentucky. The Gators had one of the highest-scoring offenses in the nation this season. Led by guard Walter Clayton Jr., Florida put up an average of 84.9 points per game this season, ranking fifth in the nation. They led the country in rebounds per game, as well, averaging 43 per night.
Florida’s defense was a weak spot for them this year, letting up over 77 points per game, but their high-powered offense allowed them to hang around with and defeat several of the other top-scoring teams in the country.
NET: 26
KenPom Overall: 24
KenPom O: 13
KenPom D: 87
Record: 24-11
Strength of Schedule: 40
Conference: SEC
Conference Record: 11-7
Quad 1 Record: 6-8
Boise State
Boise State is back in the Big Dance for the third consecutive year. The Broncos have never made it past the first round of the NCAA Tournament. They went 5-1 in conference play to start, and while they dropped a few road games as the season went on, the Broncos were able to finish up with a solid three seed in the Mountain West tournament.
The Broncos have a strong three-point defense, letting up just 30.8% from the perimeter (22nd in the nation). They rank 28th in adjusted defensive efficiency at KenPom. Forward Tyson Degenhart leads the team with 16.8 points per game.
NET: 27
KenPom Overall: 39
KenPom O: 58
KenPom D: 57
Record: 22-10
Strength of Schedule: 58
Conference: Mountain West
Conference Record: 13-5
Quad 1 Record: 6-5
Colorado
Colorado makes the cut for the Big Dance for the first time since 2021 and gets in after being on the bubble in the weeks leading up to Selection Sunday. The Buffaloes had a middling start to Pac-12 play before ending on a heater with six straight victories to close the regular season and doing just enough to sneak into the field of 68.
The stars of the show were KJ Simpson and Tristan da Silva, both of whom ended up being Pac-12 Player of the Year finalists by averaging 15+ points and 5+ rebounds per game. 6’11” center Eddie Lampkin was the enforcer in the paint by pulling down 7.1 rebounds a night.
NET: 25
KenPom Overall: 27
KenPom O: 25
KenPom D: 43
Record: 24-10
Strength of Schedule: 76
Conference: Pac-12
Conference Record: 13-7
Quad 1 Record: 4-5
2024 March Madness: UF vs. Boise St/Colorado odds
Odds from DraftKings Sportsbook TBD (First Four)
Spread: TBD
Over/Under: TBD
Moneyline: TBD
