Colorado basketball vs Florida score, highlights from thrilling March Madness game

INDIANAPOLIS — March Madness is underway for Florida basketball.

Colorado already has an NCAA Tournament win under its belt after outlasting Boise State on Wednesday night in the First Four. The No. 10-seeded Buffs and No. 7 Gators are meeting for the first time in program history.

KJ Simpson sunk a game-winner in the final seconds to lift Colorado past Florida in an instant classic.

The Coloradoan is live on the scene in Indianapolis with coverage from March Madness.

Follow along for updates throughout today's game as the NCAA Tournament gets underway.

More: Colorado basketball pulls upset of Florida in March Madness, KJ Simpson hits game winner

KJ Simpson hits game-winner

Florida made a furious comeback, but Colorado stole the upset win 102-100 when KJ Simpson hit a jumper that rattled around the rim for an eternity before falling.

Florida ties it with wild comeback

Florida makes a huge surge late as the press causes problem.

Gators tie it late with this DEEP 3-pointer:

Colorado beginning to pull away midway through second half

Back-to-back Luke O'Brien layups have given Colorado its largest lead of the game.

The Buffs have outscored Florida 20-13 in the second half so far and are continuing their torrid shooting (59% from the field as a team).

Colorado is up 65-58 with 12:25 left in the first half.

Colorado 45, Florida 45 at half

At half, we're back where we started.

A KJ Simpson mid-range, step-back jumper at the first-half buzzer tied things up after Florida led by as many as 10 points.

Colorado is shooting 60% as a team from the field and from 3-point range. Simpson and Tristan da Silva lead the Buffs with nine points apiece.

Colorado defense settling in

Florida has cooled off a bit after a hot start and has missed eight of their last 11 FG attempts.

Colorado, meanwhile, has 10 assists on its first 10 made field goals and seven different Buffs have scored.

This is the kind of fast-paced, up-tempo game both coaches wanted to play.

Florida is up 30-26 with 7:00 left in the first half.

Florida makes first surge

Defense has been optional early on.

Florida made its first four 3-point attempts of the game and led by as many as 10 points in the first eight minutes of action.

Bangot Dak has given Colorado an early boost off the bench, catching a highlight-worthy lob from Tristan da Silva.

Buffs' defense must improve.

Florida is up 24-18 with 10:36 left in the first half.

Florida basketball starters

• No. 0 Zyon Pullin

• No. 1 Walter Clayton Jr.

• No. 4 Tyrese Samuel

• No. 5 Will Richard

• No. 21 Alex Condon

Colorado basketball starters

Starting for the Buffs:

• No. 0 Luke O'Brien

• No. 1 J'Vonne Hadley

• No. 2 KJ Simpson

• No. 23 Tristan da Silva

• No. 44 Eddie Lampkin Jr.

Cody Williams among top NBA prospects in NCAA Tournament

Colorado freshman Cody Williams has had an up-and-down season marred with injuries.

The former McDonald's All-American has missed 13 games this season (wrist, face, ankle) and after being sidelined for the final four games of the regular season, Williams came off the bench for the first time in the Pac-12 Tournament.

Since then, his playing time has dwindled in every single game and he's clearly still hobbled by an ankle injury. Williams played a season-low 11 minutes in Colorado's First Four win over Boise State.

"His year has been tough in terms of start, stop, start, stop with his injuries, and unfortunately this one came at a time of the season where we haven't had a lot of quality practices," Boyle said of Williams on Thursday. "So he's rehabbing on the side, trying to get back into shape with an ankle. It's hard to get the cardio that you need to come back once you're out two-and-a-half, three weeks, whatever that was.

"It's hard to play this game when you don't practice, and Cody -- I think the timing of that ankle injury has been difficult. But I've got confidence in him. I really do. And his teammates have confidence in him. Every game is a different game, and who knows what's going to happen tomorrow. You've just got to be ready when your number is called.

"Coming off the bench sometimes is different than starting. But Cody is a competitor. He's a wonderful young man, and he's a team-first guy, which I appreciate. We're going to keep encouraging him and helping him as best we can."

Williams, who's averaging 12 points on 55.2% shooting (41% from 3-point range), is still viewed as one of the best draft prospects in March Madness.

ESPN released a list of the top 50 2024 NBA Draft prospects in the NCAA Tournament and Williams checked in at No. 6, ahead of UConn's Stephon Castle, Purdue's Zach Edey and Duke's Kyle Filipowski.

Colorado coach Tad Boyle, Florida's Todd Golden want up-tempo game

Florida basketball plays with the 18th-fastest tempo in the country, according to KenPom.

Golden hopes to continue playing at a high speed on Friday against Colorado.

"I think a big key for us tomorrow is making sure we control the tempo and pace of the game," Golden said on Thursday. "Even though they are very efficient in transition, they can operate pretty well in the half court. We want to get this game up and down a little bit and see if they can run with us. When we're at our best we're playing that way.

"Contrasting styles a little bit, but we're excited for the matchup for sure."

Boyle, however, doesn't think the teams are much different when it comes to play speed.

"We're fine playing fast," Boyle said Thursday. "I love playing fast, without a doubt. They're a very good transition offensive team, so our transition defense will be tested.

"Obviously we play in Boulder, and we want up-tempo games for sure. I'd love an up-tempo game because we haven't had one of those in a while. Our guys would be ready for that."

Florida playing without center Micah Handlogten after gruesome injury

Florida center Micah Handlogten had to be stretchered off the court and undergo surgery after suffering a left leg injury during Sunday's SEC championship. The Gators' 7-foot-1 big man was fifth in the SEC with 7.1 rebounds per game and entered the SEC title game ranked fourth nationally in offensive rebounding percentage.

"Obviously it's a variable that we have to deal with, but the great thing is our depth in the front court has been a big positive for us all year, and we'll start Alex Condon tomorrow next to Tyrese, and Tommy will get minutes, and we'll probably show small-ball lineups tomorrow, as well, just to make sure we have enough depth to survive out there all game," Florida coach Todd Golden said on Thursday.

"Next-man-up mentality, and I think Alex will be ready to go for sure."

How to watch Colorado vs Florida NCAA Tournament game

The game is on TBS.

Here are channel listings for TBS in Colorado:

• Dish: Ch. 139

• Xfinity: Ch. 18

• DirecTV: Ch. 247

Streaming: Available on Sling TV

More: Watch Colorado basketball vs. Florida in March Madness on SLING TV (subscribe today)

Follow Colorado Buffaloes sports reporter Scott Procter on X.

This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Colorado vs Florida score, highlights: 2024 NCAA Tournament