Although most people associate Thanksgiving with football and turkey, college basketball fans know the week surrounding the harvest holiday is filled with high-profile matchups in multi-team events.
There are so many MTEs around this time of year that the college hoops world has dubbed it Feast Week. Of course, not all tournaments are created equal. Although some MTEs don’t involve a bracket at all — just multiple good games in the same arena — plenty lead to a championship game. The Rady Children’s Invitational is one of them, and Florida is looking to finish on top of a solid field.
The Gators head to San Diego this week, hoping to take down TCU and then the winner of the Wisconsin-Providence game. The Badgers are a borderline top-25 team right now, which means a Quadrant 1 win is in the cards. Should the matchup come to fruition, it’s a must-win for the Orange and Blue.
Florida dropped its opener against the Arizona Wildcats and faces a pair of top-5 teams in the Duke Blue Devils and UConn Huskies in back-to-back games. Should the Gators drop both of those games, a win over Wisconsin would help balance the scales.
How strong a tournament is the Rady’s Children Invitational?
It’s one thing to come out on top of a Q1 matchup, but to do it on the back leg of a back-to-back is even more impressive. Again, this assumes both Florida and Wisconsin advance, which is what most are looking for over the holiday.
If the field seems weak, think again. CBS Sports took on the task of ranking the Feat Week MTEs, which they call the “buffet from the basketball gods.”
The Rady’s Children Invitational checks in at No. 3 on that list, so it’s about as strong as it gets. Keep in mind, Todd Golden loaded up the schedule with the three high-profile, non-conference matchups mentioned above.
“Seeing how the Gators perform in back-to-back tests against high-major opposition will be insightful,” CBS Sports’ David Cobb said. “A potential matchup with Wisconsin would be a great battle of the bigs, as both teams get tremendous production from their strong-bodied front courts.”
The two tournaments ranked ahead of the Rady’s Children Invitational are loaded, however.
The Players Era Men’s Championship features seven ranked teams, including No. 3 Houston, No. 7 Michigan and No. 8 Alabama. The Crimson Tide dropped its first-round game to No. 12 Gonzaga, which should help Florida in the national rankings. The Tennessee Volunteers are also involved in this MTE.
The other tournament ahead of Rady’s is the Baha Mar Championship, which features No. 1 Purdue and No. 20 Texas Tech. This would have been a nice one for Florida to participate in, given last year’s Final Four matchup between UF and Texas Tech. Facing off against the top team in the country is always a draw, too.
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This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Florida Gators basketball Feast Week tournament rankings CBS Sports
