Head coach Todd Golden reveals a crucial defensive gamble backfired, costing Florida the game on a stunning buzzer-beater. The Gators couldn't recover.
No. 1 seed Florida took some punches from No. 9 Iowa before being knocked out of the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday night in front of a crowd of 14,717 fans at Benchmark International Arena in Tampa, Florida.
The Hawkeyes played a more physical game, and the Gators took too long to respond as the team failed to make it out of the first weekend of the tournament after winning the national title in 2025.
With four seconds remaining, Iowa's Alvaro Folgueiras hit a three-point shot to give the Hawkeyes a 73-72 win. It took four seconds for Iowa to set up the three-point shot.
During his postgame news conference on Sunday, UF head coach Todd Golden explained that he wanted his defense to foul Folgueiras before the attempted shot to prevent a three-point basket.
"I think we were up three or four at one point late in the second half, and just did a poor job executing on both ends in the last two minutes," Golden said, via 247Sports.
"I thought obviously on the last play, we wanted to take a foul to prevent them from getting off a three, and they got away from us. We weren't able to take it and they knocked it down, so credit to them for that. Just a tough way to go out."
It was a curious admission, as a missed basket on a low-percentage shot could have worked in Florida's favor. However, the Gators were unable to make a basket in the final four seconds.
Golden called the outcome disappointing.
"Overall a disappointing result for us tonight, but credit Iowa," Golden said. "I thought they played well, especially in the first half. Had us on our heels a little bit, and I thought they were physically tougher than us in the first half.
"And it took a little bit for us to regain our footing and then they got off to a good start in the second half. Really proud of our guys and the way we fought."
The Gators started the season off 5-4, but played exceptionally well during SEC play. However, Florida struggled against Vanderbilt in the SEC semifinal, losing 91-74.
This Gators team just didn't seem to have the same ceiling as the one that won a title a year ago. It'll be interesting to see how Golden builds the roster for the 2026-27 campaign.