TAMPA, FLORIDA - MARCH 20: Lance Williams #12 of the Prairie View A&M Panthers drives on Boogie Fland #0 of the Florida Gators during the first round of the 2026 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament held at Benchmark International Arena on March 20, 2026 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Tyler Schank/NCAA Photos via Getty Images) TAMPA, FLORIDA - MARCH 20: Cory Wells #13 of the Prairie View A&M Panthers chases down a loose ball during the first round of the 2026 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament against the Florida Gators held at Benchmark International Arena on March 20, 2026 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Tyler Schank/NCAA Photos via Getty Images) TAMPA, FLORIDA - MARCH 20: Elijah Mitchell #23 of the Prairie View A&M Panthers drives to the basket against Xaivian Lee #1 of the Florida Gators during the first half in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Benchmark International Arena on March 20, 2026 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Mike Carlson/Getty Images) TAMPA, FLORIDA - MARCH 20: Tai'Reon Joseph #3 of the Prairie View A&M Panthers dribbles against Urban Klavzar #7 of the Florida Gators during the first half in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Benchmark International Arena on March 20, 2026 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Mike Carlson/Getty Images) TAMPA, Fla. - Prairie View A&M is out of the NCAA men’s college basketball tournament after their defeat by Florida on Friday.
The Panthers couldn't keep up with the Gators in the first-round game in Tampa, Florida, losing with a final score of 55-114.
No. 16 Prairie View was down 21-60 to top-ranked Florida by the end of the first half, and never managed to bring it back during the second half.
The Gators' dominance was apparent in statistics, with a 64% rate of field goals, a 45% rate of three-pointers and a 78% rate of free throws.
This was Prairie View's third appearance in the tournament.
Key players for Prairie View A&M
- Guard Tai'Reon Joseph scored 16 points and hit 5 of his field goals.
- Forward Hassane Diallo scored 8 points and got eight rebounds.
- Forward Cory Wells scored six points.
What it means
With the loss, Prairie View A&M drops from the tournament, and the Gators are set to face Iowa in a second round game Sunday.
The Source: Information in this story came from the NCAA's March Madness Live website.