2009 MetroPCS Orange Bowl Basketball Classic participants the University of Florida and the University of Richmond were among the 65 teams selected to take part in the upcoming NCAA Tournament. The 10th seeded Gators (21-12) will face the seventh seeded BYU Cougars (29-5) on Thursday in Oklahoma City, OK, in the West Region while the seventh seeded Spiders (26-8) take on the 10th seeded St. Mary’s California Gaels (26-5) on Thursday in Providence, RI in the South Region.
Florida and Richmond squared off against each other during the annual MetroPCS Orange Bowl Basketball Classic in December in which Spiders rallied from a 13-point first half deficit to defeat the Gators 56-53. They are the 43rd and 44th teams in the 16 year history of the MetroPCS Orange Bowl Basketball Classic that went on to take part in a postseason tournament.
Sponsors for the 2009 Classic included MetroPCS, American Airlines, BankAtlantic Center, FSFlorida/Sun Sports, Greater Ft. Lauderdale CVB, Miami Herald and Miller Lite.
Florida is returning to the NCAA Tournament following a two year absence. The Florida-BYU winner plays the winner of No. 2 seed Kansas State against No. 15 North Texas. The Gators have won 12 consecutive games in the NCAA tournament, all coming during back-to-back title runs in 2006 and 2007.
Richmond, which reached the Atlantic-10 Championship game and won a school-record 26 games, is making its first NCAA appearance since 2004. The Richmond-St. Mary’s winner plays the winner of the No. 2 seed Villanova against No. 15 Robert Morris. The Spiders are 6-7 in seven previous NCAA appearances, making a trip to the Sweet 16 in 1998.
The 17th MetroPCS Orange Bowl Basketball Classic, one of the signature events of the 2010-11 Orange Bowl Festival, will be held on Saturday, December 18 at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise. The University of Florida and University of Miami, which won 20 games and made a run to the ACC Tournament semifinals in a valiant effort to reach the NCAA Tournament, will again be the host teams in the Classic against opponents yet to be named. The annual double-header is the only Division I basketball played in Broward. Tickets for the MetroPCS Orange Bowl Basketball Classic and other Orange Bowl Festival events can be purchased by visiting www.orangebowl.org or contacting 305.341.4702.