Sharp-Shooting 'Cinderella' Has UF's Attention

Sunday, March 21

Indianapolis, IN

7:45 PM

Florida Gators

Oral Roberts

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Scenes from the #Gators' 75-70 win over the Hokies in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Florida coach Mike White is 6-3 in in NCAA Tournament play.

Sharp-Shooting 'Cinderella' Has UF's Attention

Sunday, March 21, 2021 | Men's Basketball, Chris Harry

INDIANAPOLIS – Had you asked Florida's players last week as to the extent of their knowledge about Oral Roberts you may have gotten answers ranging from "Who's he play for?" to "Is that a mouthwash?"

OK, so that's an exaggeration (probably), but it's safe to assume the Gators' collective intel regarding anything about the roadblock that stands between them and a spot in the NCAA Tournament's "Sweet 16" would have been light, at best.

"I know now they're in the Summitt [Conference]," junior guard Noah Locke said. "But I didn't know who the team was."

What about you, Coach?

"Don't try to trick me into saying something crazy," White hit back instantly when asked about the tiney evangelical university (just 4,000 students) that was founded in 1963 by its namesake and one of the most popular televangelist of all time. "From Tulsa, Oklahoma and they're Summitt League champs."

And now Oral Roberts is everybody's underdog darling and bracket buster after upsetting second-seeded Ohio State in overtime of Friday's opening-round play of the South Region. The Golden Eagles (17-10), the postseason tournament champs of the Summitt, became just the ninth No. 15 seed – since the tournament went to the 16-seed format in 1985 – to advance and earned a Sunday night date against No. 7-seed Florida, which also needed overtime to defeat No. 10-seed Virginia Tech.

Oral Roberts' players celebrate as the final horn sounds in their first-round upset of No. 2-seed Ohio State, marking just the ninth time in 37 NCAA tournaments a 15-seed has advanced.

After watching the Eagles (affectionately known as the "Oral Bobs" in some parts) stare down a Big Ten heavyweight, the guys wearing the orange and blue will got a cram course on one of the most dangerous outside-shooting teams in the country, led by 6-foot-1 guard Max Ambas, the who just so happens to be the leading scorer in the country.

"Those guys can really shoot the ball," said Locke, who knows a little something about that facet of the game, being the No. 9 all-time 3-pointer shooting in UF history and all. "I mean, for sure, I know they have a lot of confidence in their shots [with] all the guys able to make shots. I admire it."

[Read senior writer Chris Harry's "Pregame Stuff" setup here]

The Eagles will come into the game ranked No. 1 nationally in 3-point makes per game at 11.3. They're one of only three teams to attempt more than 300 on the season – one of those teams is Alabama, so the Gators will have a feel for what's coming – and they jacked 3-bombs at a rate of 29.2 per game (fifth in Division I), with their 38.7-percent marksmanship good for 12^th. And then there's Ambas, who is scoring at a 24.4-per-game clip after hanging 29 on OSU. He hit five of 10 from deep in that game, which was even better than his season's average of 43.6 percent, which puts him at eighth nationally.

And they're hardly a one-man outfit.

If the Gators get caught up in Ambas, then 6-8, 225-pound forward Kevin Obanor could have himself a night like he did against the Buckeyes in scoring 30 points (with five makes from deep) to go with 11 rebounds and a perfect 7-for-7 from the free-throw line. Obanor is equally effective when defenders force him inside (49.8 percent overall on the season) or outside (41.3 from the arc).

They're no two-man outfit, either.

Context: The Gators have five players who have made at least 10 3-point shots this season. The Eagles have five who have made at least 25, so pick your poison.

More context: Florida has been pretty good when it comes to defending the 3 this season (30.5 percent), with only three of the last 11 opponents hitting at least 30 (only two were better than 31 percent). The Gators, though, have had games (specifically, key moments in games) when they've gotten lackadaisical with their defensive rotations. Similar spells against ORU would be costly, obviously.

"One of the most difficult matchups for us defensively all year," White said. "They all shoot it. Their top six can all pass, dribble and shoot. I'm not talking about good shooters. Really, really good shooters, led by Abmas and Obanor. The nation's leading scorer [and] Obanor shoots it as well as any post player that we have player since I've been at Florida. Shoots it like a two-guard. Their sixth man comes in at 6-8 and shoots it like a two-guard. They just space you and spread you, which opens up driving lanes for arguably the fastest guy in our game. We have our hands full trying to defend these guys."

Sophomore guard Tre Mann scored 14 points and hit a clutch 3-pointer with 24 seconds left in overtime to help the Gators push past Virginia Tech in the NCAA Tournament's first round.

Let the record show ORU giant-killed OSU on a day the Eagles did not shoot it particularly well. They hit just 35.7 percent for the game and just 11 of 35 from deep (31.4 percent). But they hit timely ones and, lost in the conversation about this team, played some terrific defense (the Buckeyes were just 43 percent for the game and a woeful 5-for-23 from distance), forced some turnovers (15) and played with more poise than Ohio State (9-for-18 from the free-throw line), which just a couple weeks was being talked about as a potential No. 1 seed.

"I thought we would win. Our guys thought we would win. The reality is you have to turn around and we're about to play another one, so the celebration better be pretty quick," said Oral Roberts coach Paul Mills, who did 17 seasons an assistant at Baylor before heading to Tulsa in 2017. "You want your players to have this experience and enjoy it, but the reality is, I can tell you, I've been to four Sweet 16s and that's a better feel."

Florida went to the Sweet 16 during White's second season (2016-17) and would love for this adversity-challenged bunch to experience the euphoria that comes with such a run. Anything short of what the Gators got against the Hokies – like interior banging from Colin Castleton, big shot-making from Tre Mann, an under-control Scottie Lewis – likely won't be enough to stop this tournament's "Cinderella" fairy tale.

White's not even sure that term even applies. "I don't know what you label them other than a really good team that just won a championship a week ago. and now just beat Ohio State."