Florida Was Way, Way, Way Better Than Ohio State

If you watched the game, you certainly don't need me to tell you that. And I don't say that to rub it in to Buckeyes fans ... just the opposite, actually. It should be comforting. Not that any loss in a championship game is easy (and again, you know this), but it's not like this was a game that Ohio State blew. It wasn't a choke, it wasn't an off game, it was just the Florida Gators being damn near unbeatable.

Florida would have beaten anyone last night ... be it Georgetown, UCLA, Kansas, UNC, anyone. You could put together an All-Star team from those four schools, and they wouldn't have beaten Florida last night. The Gators were too good, too talented, too deep, too complete. Too perfect.

Think about the following things, and then think about the fact that they didn't matter:

• Greg Oden had 25 and 12, with four blocks. Didn't matter.
• Florida turned the ball over 15 times, Ohio State just 7. Didn't matter.
• Oden wasn't in foul trouble and played 38 minutes, his second-highest minute total this year. Didn't matter.
• Joakim Noah was 1-of-3 from the floor. Didn't matter.

All of those things happened, and Ohio State was never really in the game. That's pretty amazing. I don't know if anyone out there could have read those four stats before the game, and had any faith that the Gators were going to win.

A lot of people will say that three-point shooting was the major factor, and while that's true, it's not the entire truth. Ohio State was 4-of-23 from beyond the arc, and Florida was 10-of-18. But Florida's 10-of-18 happened for a reason, and that reason isn't just that Lee Humphrey, Taurean Green, and Corey Brewer can shoot.

It was because Al Horford commanded attention on the block, because Brewer sliced up the defense all night, because they got to loose balls, because they were quicker in transition, and because Ohio State's big men wouldn't/couldn't come out and help on the perimeter. Yes, the threes were a factor, but it wasn't happenstance. Billy Donovan wanted it that way, and the Gators earned those open looks. And by the same token, a lot of Ohio State's looks from three were not great looks, because of Florida's defensive versatility, and that they declined to not double team the post.

Florida was just all-around better, and had personnel, teamwork, experience, and ability that Ohio State couldn't handle. But don't feel bad about it, Buckeyes. No one could have.