Florida will join its fellow No. 1 seeds later this week in the Final Four.
The Gators defeated Texas Tech this past Saturday to advance to the semifinals. However, before that, they needed to make it past Maryland in the Sweet 16. UF took care of business against the Terrapins, but a walk-on’s postgame interview made headlines.
Bennett Andersen, who also had a stint as the Gators team manager, does not typically draw much attention from members of the media. He has seen a limited amount of playing time and has scored a total of four points this season.
However, he appeared to enjoy the opportunity to have a camera focus on him and was particularly fond of the person who conducted the interview. ESPN Gainesville student reporter Talia Baia asked Andersen a few questions, including one about him making just his second basket of the season.
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“Hopefully these guys take care of business so I can play again, hopefully I can get another bucket”
A video of the interview posted to Baia’s social media account drew more than 7 million views as of Monday morning.
Some social media users suggested that the Florida basketball player was enamored with the student reporter.
“That man is in love lol,” on X user wrote.
“Bennie buckets about to risk it all and go for 50 pts,” another wrote about the eventual Elite Eight matchup between the Gators and Texas Tech.
Andersen grabbed an offensive rebound with 40 seconds remaining in the Sweet 16 game, ripping it away for the Terrapins, and drove to the hoop for a layup.
The Florida bench went crazy for their teammate in the exciting moment.
However, in the Elite Eight matchup, Andersen did not see any minutes. Still, the Gators earned an 84-79 victory on Saturday after what was a 30-point night from senior guard Walter Clayton Jr.
Sophomore forward Thomas Haugh also delivered with 20 points and graduate student Alijah Martin added 10.
Florida is waiting for its Final Four opponent, which will be determined by the Auburn-Michigan State contest on Sunday evening.
It is the Gators’ sixth time in the Final Four in program history and the first time in 11 years.
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