Mike White was smiling.
Maybe it was because his team had just won its sixth-straight game, three of which have come on the road and five of which have come against conference opponents.
Maybe it was because of the joke he had just made (“You guys looked brain dead in the first half against Texas A&M,” one reporter remarked. “Brain dead is kind,” White said).
Or, more than likely, maybe it was because of the news White was given after No. 17 Florida’s 71-62 win over the Aggies on Saturday: The Gators were awarded the No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament selection committee’s first rankings of the season.
White shrugged his shoulders.
“The computers like us again,” he said.
With six games remaining in the regular season, the Florida basketball program is experiencing a resurgence.
The Gators have more SEC wins than last season (nine) while becoming the first conference team to reach 20 wins. They’re in prime position to not only make the NCAA Tournament — something UF hasn’t done since 2014 — but also land a top-four seeding, perhaps ahead of No. 15 Kentucky.
And they’re finally seeing sustained success under their head coach, a rare feat ever since UF’s Final Four run under former coach Billy Donovan three years ago.
“We’ve taken care of business,” White said, “and we’ve continued to get better.”
Now, however, the test for Florida will be to avoid another late-season collapse.
Last year, UF destroyed its chances at an NCAA Tournament berth after losing four in a row to South Carolina, Vanderbilt, LSU and Kentucky in late February and early March.
And similar to last year, the road to the finish line won’t be any easier this season.
Florida’s final six opponents have a combined record of 100-49. Four of those games will come on the road, including a matchup with Kentucky, where the Wildcats will be looking for revenge after being embarrassed by 22 points in Gainesville on Feb. 4.
But Florida’s players are embracing the challenge.
“I think we’re definitely peaking at the right time,” graduate transfer Canyon Barry said. “No one has personal agendas, and I think that’s part of the reason we’ve been so successful.”
White agrees. After UF lost to Vanderbilt on Jan. 21, he criticized his team for being selfish and for blaming others instead of taking ownership of their mistakes.
Since then, the Gators haven’t lost a game, and White said UF has looked like a different team.
“These past few games, we just kind of really bought into everything he’s preaching,” Barry said. “I think it shows.”
Contact Ian Cohen at icohen@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @icohenb.
UF coach Mike White speaks with guard Canyon Barry during Florida's 71-62 win against Texas A&M on Feb. 11, 2017, in the O'Connell Center.
