Gators to Play Xavier in Phil Knight Legacy

The Phil Knight Legacy lineup is out, and the Gators men’s basketball team is set to take on Ohio’s Xavier University.

Earlier this month, the Gators announced their 2022-23 non-conference schedule. This included the announcement the Gators’ placement in Phil Knight Legacy.

https://twitter.com/GatorsMBK/status/1551614459554185216

Phil Knight Openers

It has been officially announced today that on Thanksgiving Day, the Gators men’s basketball team will play Xavier in the opening round of Phil Knight Legacy in Portland, Oregon. On November 24, the game will begin at 5:30 p.m. EST and air on ESPN2 from the Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

Florida and Xavier’s History

The Gators defeated the Musketeers 70-65 in the Charleston Classic final. The most recent matchup between the teams was in the second round of the National Invitation Tournament this past season, in which the Musketeers won 72-56. However, interim head coaches led both teams. Xavier ended up winning the tournament where they beat Texas A&M in a close game where Texas A&M was leading by one until heavily guarded forward Jack Nunge made a tough shot in the paint—resulting in the end score being 73-72.

Phil Knight Legacy

The Florida-Xavier game is paired in the bracket with a Duke-Oregon State showdown. Each game’s winning and losing teams will face off the following day, Friday, November 25, at the Moda Center. Then, on Sunday, November 27, the Gators will play a team from the opposing side of the bracket, such as Gonzaga, Portland State, Purdue or West Virginia.
While Sean Miller takes over at Xavier for a second term as the team’s head coach. Florida will enter this tournament as head coach Todd Golden’s first holiday tournament debut.

Ticket Information

Packages for the Moda Championship are currently on sale. In addition, single session tickets will go on sale on Friday, July 29 at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT. Ticket details are available here.