In the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Tournament, the Maryland Terrapins will do battle against the Florida Gators in West Region action. This Maryland vs Florida game is scheduled for Thursday, March 27, 2025 and will take place at Chase Center in San Francisco, CA. Both of these teams won close second-round games in this tournament and drama will be expected in this contest as well.
Before this game, online sportsbooks have made Florida a 4.5-point favorite. The early total for this contest has been set at 154.5. Will the top-seed in the West advance, or will we see an upset in the Sweet 16? Continue reading to get our prediction for what is sure to be an interesting matchup in college basketball.
Crab Five Of Maryland Looks For Elite Run
The Maryland Terrapins needed a second-half comeback to defeat the Colorado State Rams in round two of the NCAA Tournament. Maryland’s size was a huge factor in that victory, with Derik Queen and Julian Reese making big plays at the rim on both ends of the floor to help them secure the victory, with Queen hitting the tournament’s first buzzer beater. Maryland’s physicality will be a major factor again in this game as the Terps will look to control the glass to win this game.
How Maryland will deal with the shooting of Florida will also be a key factor in this matchup. The Terrapins were a little fortunate in the second round against Colorado State, as Nique Clifford and the Rams struggled to hit shots from the outside. Florida is far less likely to have a bad shooting night and Maryland will have to find a way to force misses from the perimeter to keep themselves in this one.
Florida Favored to Reach Elite 8
The Florida Gators showed a ton of heart in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. They trailed for the majority of their game against two-time defending champions UConn on Sunday but fought back to grab the victory and advance in the final minutes of action. In this game, Florida will look for a more straightforward victory to advance to the West regional final.
While Florida struggled to defeat the eight-seed in their region last time out, UConn is not your typical eight-seed given their recent history in this tournament. But if Florida wants to beat another talented team here to advance, they will need to be better from the free-throw line. Florida went 22-34 from the charity stripe on Sunday, making just 64.7% of their shots from the line. Another shaky showing in that department could lead to an upset loss here.
Maryland vs Florida Prediction
Florida -4.5 (-110) over Maryland
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- Florida has a substantial depth advantage going into this game, which should help them to pull away in the second half.
- Florida has the physicality to stand up to Reese and Queen of Maryland in our opinion.
