Pregame Stuff: Florida vs Wisconsin (Friday, 9:59 pm)

NCAA EAST REGION
FLORIDA vs WISCONSIN

When: Friday, 9:59 p.m. (ET)
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York City
Records: Florida 26-8; Wisconsin 27-9
TV: TBS (Verne Lundquist, Jim Spanarkel and Allie LaForce)
Radio: Gator IMG Sports Network (Mick Hubert and Mark Wise)

STAKES (The Setup)

Florida, the fourth seed in the NCAA East Region, meets one of the two Cinderellas on the other side of its bracket in Wisconsin, which after holding serve against No. 9-seed Virginia Tech 84-74, then upset No. 1 seed and reigning national champion Villanova 65-62 in the Round of 32. UF arrived here with relative ease by dispatching of 13-seed East Tennessee State 80-65 in its opener, followed by a 66-39 trouncing of No. 5-seed Virginia in the second round. The winner will advance to the Elite Eight to face the survivor of the night's early regional semifinal between No. 3-seed Baylor (27-7) and 7-seed/giant killer South Carolina (24-10), which pulled the upset of the tournament in upending Duke, a popular pick to win the whole thing. ... The Gators are in the "Sweet 16" for the 11th time in school history, but the sixth time since 2006 and first time under Coach Mike White, now in his second season. The Badgers are in their 10th Sweet 16, with all of them since 2000, including a fourth straight. ... UF is 8-1 all-time in regional semifinal play. ... Florida and Wisconsin have met four times, with the series tied 2-2. The two were paired in the Big Ten/SEC Challenge in 2012 and '13, with the Gators winning a 74-56 in Gainesville in '12 and the Badgers returning the favor on Nov. 12, 2013 with a 59-53 victory at Madison. Florida played that one without Scottie Wilbekin and Dorian Finney-Smith, who were both suspended. In just his second collegiate game, freshman Kasey Hill got the start at point guard at sold-out Kohl Center -- also in the starting lineup that night was walk-on Jake Kurtz, with young Billy Donovan, another walk-on, also getting some minutes -- and struggled in finishing with just four points and four assists. The Gators got 20 points from Michael Frazier II and 12 from Casey Prather, but it was Traevon Jackson's shot in the final minute that helped seal the win for Wisconsin. Sam Dekker had 16 for the Badgers. ... Florida is 4-3 all-time against the Big Ten Conference in NCAA play, including the win over Ohio State in the '07 national championship game.

STARTERS (Probable Lineups)

Florida	Pos.	Ht.	Wt.	Class	Per Game
Devin Robinson	F	6-8	200	Junior	9.0 pts / 5.6 reb
Justin Leon	F	6-8	206	Senior	5.3 pts / 3.1 reb
Kevarrius Hayes	C	6-9	220	Sophomore	11.5 pts / 6.5 reb
KeVaughn Allen	G	6-2	183	Sophomore	11.6 pts / 2.7 reb
Kasey Hill	PG	6-1	175	Senior	9.1 pts / 3.3 asts

Wisconsin	Pos.	Ht.	Wt.	Class	Per Game
Nigel Hayes	F	6-8	240	Senior	13.8 pts / 6.6 reb
Ethan Happ	F	6-10	232	R-Sophomore	13.8 pts / 9.1 reb
Vitto Brown	F	6-8	235	Senior	6.8 pts / 3.9 reb
Zak Showalter	G	6-3	185	R-Senior	8.1 pts / 2.8 reb
Bronson Koenig	G	6-3	190	Senior	14.5 pts / 2.1 reb

STANDING OUT (One to Watch)

If you watched the NCAA Tournament last year, you remember **Bronson Koenig**. His heroics in Wisconsin's second-round defeat of Xavier -- a 3-pointer to tie the game with 11.7 seconds left, then a falling-out-of-bounds-3 at the buzzer to win -- are now the stuff of legend in the Badger State. As if he needed more ammo, he was saddled with four trouble in the second half in last weekend's game against 1-seed Villanova and came off the bench to hit a huge 3-ball to give his team a late lead. "Big Shot" Bronson leads Wisconsin in scoring while shooting 42.2 percent from the floor, 39.5 from the 3-point line and 90.2 from the free-throw stripe. His 100 treys on the season -- including eight last weekend -- is 28 more than UF's most prolific long-range shooter. Koenig is not necessarily a threat to drive the ball, but his work on the perimeter allows the Badger bigs to flourish inside. Look for Koenig to draw UF's best perimeter defender, **Kasey Hill**, on that end of the floor in an effort to challenge his efficiency with quickness.

STUFF (Need-to-Know Info)

ABOUT THE GATORS: They were as dominant as any team during the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament, with their combined victory margin of 41 points the largest of the teams left in the field, except for 1-seeds North Carolina and Kansas. The UF defense completely overwhelmed its two opponents and now ranks third overall in efficiency, according to KenPom advance metrics. ... The Gators, up to No. 27th in offensive efficiency, shot 47.1 percent from the floor and 34.9 from deep in the first two rounds, despite their two leading scorers, guard KeVaughn Allen and backup forward Canyon Barry (11.8 ppg), going a combined 5-for-29 from the floor and 2-for-17 from deep. UF likely won't be able to withstand similar numbers against an opponent as across-the-board solid as the Badgers, but that was the prevailing thought heading into the Virginia game, as well, and the Gators got production from elsewhere on the way to winning easily. ... Forward Devin Robinson was sensational on both ends in Orlando, averaging 19 points and nine rebounds while shooting 60 percent. His length on defense, especially in help situations, caused problems and will be needed against a Wisconsin team that wants to score on the interior. ... The backcourt of dual point guards Kasey Hill and Chris Chiozza (7.1 ppg, 3.7 apg), who will play together at times along with Allen, will look to capitalize on its quickness advantage, with the Gators -- as usual -- looking to cash in on any transition opportunities. ... Center Kevarrius Hayes needs to avoid foul trouble, given the interior emphasis of the Wisconsin offense and forward Justin Leon's touch from the 3-point, which he rediscovered in Orlando (4-for-8) after something of a slump, would help open things up for guard penetration. ... ABOUT THE BADGERS: Coach Greg Gard was the choice of Bo Ryan to take over the program when Ryan announced his retirement heading into the 2015-16 season. Gard had been the Badgers' associate head coach under Ryan from 2001-15 years, so the transition was smooth and the Badgers have continued their roll. UW is 42-17 in Gard's two seasons, with two Sweet 16s and looking for bigger and better things. ... Wisconsin has 57 games of NCAA Tournament experience built into its roster, with four players who appeared in the 2015 Final Four when the Badgers upset unbeaten Kentucky and lost to Duke in the title game. ... The Badgers' senior class has 115 victories, the most in program history. ... The UW defense checks in at No. 7 in defensive efficiency and 36th in offense. ... The Badgers made 19 3-pointers in their regional pod at Buffalo, N.Y., with Koening leading the charge by going 11-for-23. He's not the only one that got hit from deep, though. Backcourt mate Zak Showalter is a threat at 48-for-22 on the season (39.3 percent). So is guard Vitto Brown, who is 42 of 134 (31.3 percent) on the season. ... Forward Nigel Hayes is a very good post player who knows how to get in position to score (45.4 percent from the floor). Ask Villanova. His go-ahead reverse layup with 11.4 seconds left fueled the upset. Forward Ethan Happ leads the team in field-goal percentage (.584), rebounds (326) and assists (100). That last stat is not a misprint. The Badgers play a form of positionless basketball that puts all of them in spots to distribute the ball. ... The Happ-Hayes tandem helps make Wisconsin one of the nation's top offensive-rebounding teams, but it also makes the Badgers a very poor free-throw shooting team at just 64.3 percent. Opponents are willing to foul Happ and Hayes, who clang at 49.4 and 59.3 percent, respectively.

STATS (Some Numbers of Note)

* 2 — Trips to Madison Square Garden for both teams this season. The Gators lost 84-74 to Duke on Dec. 6 in the Jimmy V Classic, while the Badgers defeated Rutgers 72-52 as part of a so-called "Super Saturday" Big Ten event that was followed by a Wisconsin-Ohio State hockey game.

* 42 — Native Americans playing Division I basketball, a group that includes Koenig, who grew up in LaCrosse, Wis., but identifies as a member of the Ho-Chunk nation and has been an outspoken critic of such issues as the Dakota Access Pipeline and Indian-theme mascots for sports teams.

* 47 — Wins for White in his first two seasons, which are the most in Southeastern Conference history for a coach at a school other than Kentucky. The UK coaches White trails are John Calipari (64), Tubby Smith (63) and Eddie Sutton (50).

* 198 — Combined assists this season by Happ (100) and Hayes (98), the Badgers' two starting forwards. Not only is that more than double the combined assists of all of Florida's frontcourt players, but both have more individually than the aggregate Gators' assist total of 94.

* 1999 — The last year Florida lost a regional semifinal. That was when Gonzaga's Casey Calvary tipped in an offensive rebound with four seconds left to send the 10th-seeded Bulldogs to a 73-72 victory over the Gators at Phoenix. Since then, UF has won seven straight Sweet 16 games (2000, '06, '07, '11, '12, '13 and '14).

STATEMENT (Random thought)

The Badgers don't have the athleticism and speed of the Gators, but what they lack on those front they will more than make up in skill and basketball IQ. Florida wants an uptempo pace. Wisconsin wants a halfcourt game. Whoever's style wins out, wins the game.

* Check out our Sweet 16 'Digital Guide here

Gators Calendar

Pregame Stuff: Florida vs Wisconsin (Friday, 9:59 pm)

Players Mentioned

KeVaughn Allen

Canyon Barry

Chris Chiozza

Dorian Finney-Smith

Kevarrius Hayes

Kasey Hill

Justin Leon

Devin Robinson

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Pregame Stuff: Florida vs Wisconsin (Friday, 9:59 pm)

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Players Mentioned

KeVaughn Allen

Canyon Barry

Chris Chiozza

Dorian Finney-Smith

Kevarrius Hayes

Kasey Hill

Justin Leon

Devin Robinson

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