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NCAA Tournament Predictions: Florida vs. St. Bonaventure
- Updated: March 14, 2018
Courtney Stockard and the Bonnies will provide a stern challenge for Florida. (Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
March Madness is here, and that means RoundballDaily.com is ready to help you make your bracket love you back.
Who’s going to win the matchup between Florida and St. Bonaventure? Check out our complete breakdown and prediction below.
6. Florida (20-12, 11-7/SEC)
Chris Chiozza is one of the nation’s toughest, and headiest backcourt players. (FloridaGators.com)
The Gators looked like one of the best teams in the nation at the beginning of the season, when they knocked off Gonzaga and then led Duke throughout in a hard-fought loss at the PK80 Invitational.
They rose to as high as No. 4 in the rankings, but a home loss to Loyola-Chicago (now in the bracket) signaled that this wasn’t a team ready to ascend to national title contender.
Florida has one of the headiest and best guards in the nation in 6-0 senior Chris Chiozza, who hit that crazy runner to beat Wisconsin in the Sweet 16 at the Garden last year.
They’ve also got a talented 6-6 senior in Jalen Hudson (15.3 ppg) and KeVaughn Allen (11.3 ppg).
This group struggled with consistency and had some head-scratching losses (South Carolina, Vanderbilt, Georgia) but has enough talent to make another deep run. The Gators have reached at least the Elite 8 in each of their last five NCAA appearances, dating back to 2011.
11. St. Bonaventure (26-7, 14-4/Atlantic 10)
The Bonnies defeated UCLA in Dayton on Tuesday to advance into the *real* bracket and a matchup with the Gators. First Four winners have fared well when they reach the Riybd if 64, having gotten those first game jitters out of the way.
This is a team that can compete, too, as the Bonnies have some players. 6-2 senior Jaylen Adams (19.8 ppg, 5.4 apg, 3.6 rpg) shared Atlantic 10 Player of the Year honors with Davidson’s Peyton Aldridge.
He’s a shifty, tough-to-defend guard who shoots it extremely well from deep (45.7%). Matt Mobley (18.5 ppg, 5 rpg) is a terrific guard as well, as is 6-5 junior Courtney Stockard, who was key in St. Bonaventure’s win against the Bruins on Tuesday.
This team won 13 in a row before falling to eventual A-10 tourney champ Davidson in the semifinals. They’re a legitimate
PREDICTION: St. Bonaventure
After watching their inspired performance in Dayton, we like the Bonnies to keep the ride going for just a little while longer. This group is talented enough to knock off an inconsistent Florida squad, and could easily reach the Sweet 16. That’s where we’ll say their run ends, at the hands of Purdue.
[democracy id=”5″]
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