Sooner or later, we have to acknowledge that the Florida Gators (18-3, 6-1 SEC) are back to building something pretty special in Gainesville. After Sunday’s smashing of Vanderbilt, the Gators have entered the conversation for an opening-round NCAA Tournament date in Tampa.

A few weeks ago, that looked like a long shot. It’s still not close to secure—the NCAA generally rewards top-four seeds with favorable sites, if it can be worked out—but the Gators are definitely on a roll. It’s reminiscent of UF’s young team from 1998-99. Those Gators played through their mistakes, got drilled a few times, but found themselves by season’s end and played into the Sweet 16 as a No. 6 seed.

I’m guess the Gators are somewhere in the No. 6 to No. 7 range right now. The next few weeks will tell a lot. Florida goes to Arkansas on Saturday, then travels to Tennessee, its chief competition in the SEC East, on Feb. 5. Florida’s last two trips to Knoxville were not kind for the teams that ended up capturing back-to-back national titles.

Other weekend observations:

* Purdue (15-5, 6-1 Big Ten) is underrated. The Boilermakers play smart and play together. That was evident in the 60-56 win against Wisconsin. While everyone focuses on the Badgers, Indiana and Michigan State in the Big Ten, you’d be well advised to keep an eye on Purdue.

* What a win for Connecticut on Saturday afternoon, going on the road to stun Indiana 68-63, after Coach Jim Calhoun had suspended two key guards. The Huskies pulled out a miraculous victory at Cincinnati, then followed it up with UConn’s most satisfying win since the 2004 national championship. If UConn can defeat Louisville on Monday night, that will be one of the more remarkable weeks of Calhoun’s career.

* Good news for the Miami Hurricanes (15-4). They stayed afloat in the ACC with a 75-72 home victory against Clemson. Bad news: Four of UM’s next five games are on the road.