Three SEC teams will be in play on the second day of the Elite 8 in the Ncaa Tournament. Similar to the ACC last season, there's a lot of teams remaining in the big dance, and it's certainly surprising with many considering it a down season for the conference. South Carolina continues to be a shocking Cinderella story after downing Baylor in easy fashion. Florida broke the hearts of Wisconsin fans with a crushing buzzer beater on Friday night. Tipoff for the East regional final is set for 2:20 PM Eastern time on Sunday afternoon and it will be broadcast on CBS and the March Madness Live app.
No. 7 South Carolina (25-10, 14-16-2 ATS)
When will this run end for the Gamecocks, who have now won three consecutive after finishing the regular season losing five of their last six and getting bounced in their first game of the SEC tournament? A benefit they have is familiarity with Florida, and their season series is split this season with both team winning at home. However, in their latest meeting, the Gators pummeled them 81-66.
Sindarius Thornwell (21.4 ppg, 7.2 rpg) continues to be the main story as he's been all season for South Carolina. He put up consecutive scoring outputs of 24 points against Duke and Baylor, and he opened up the NCAA tournament with 29 points and 11 rebounds against Marquette.
No. 3 Florida (27-8, 19-13-1 ATS)
Similar to their opponent, the Gators weren't exactly running on all cylinders heading into the postseason. They lost three of their last four games entering into the big dance, including falling to Vanderbilt in back-to-back contests. However, their defense has been rock-solid in the early rounds and when they needed it, they were clutch in their thrilling overtime win over Wisconsin.
KeVaughn Allen (14.1 ppg) has been limited in the NCAA tournament with just 11 points in the first two rounds, but he ramped up his production with 35 points in their recent win.
Florida is favored by 3.5 points and the total O/U is set at 132.5 points. The Gators are 6-1-1 against the spread in their last 8 neutral site games as a favorite.
