Florida is Led to The NCAA Final Game by Clayton – The NCAA Tournament is going down in history thanks to Walter Clayton Jr. Now all Florida needs is for him to make one more delivery.
The Gators will play Houston in Monday night’s title game at the Alamodome. The Gators now have a chance at a different national title after another outstanding effort by their All-America guard.
On Saturday night, Florida defeated Auburn, a foe of theirs in the Southeastern the Conference, 79-73. Clayton, who had not scored in a tournament since Larry Bird, led the Seminoles with 34 points, including five 3-pointers. Following their 2006 and 2007 national championship runs, the Gators have not advanced to the finals until this year.
“Clayton was unique. “He was just the deciding factor,” commented Bruce Pearl, coach of Auburn. “We were unable to control him near that point.”
So far in the NCAA Tournament, no team has faced the tournament’s top scorer. By his 30-point performance in both the Elite Eight as well as semifinals, he becomes the first player to do so since Bird of Indiana State of 1979, based on ESPN Stats.
He carries himself with poise, composure, and self-assurance. Gators guard Richard expressed the team’s trust in him. His work ethic and practice are on full display. Seeing him accomplish it in the game is something we’re all really happy about.
Clayton had to rally the Gators (35-4) twice in this season to get them to this point. Last Sunday, he assisted in UConn’s comeback from a nine-point deficit to defeat Texas Tech with less than three minutes remaining on the clock. In the second round, he scored thirteen of his twenty-three points during the final eight minutes, helping UConn to a 77-75 victory that halted their chase of a third consecutive national championship.
“I guess I’m just accustomed to seeing him putting the ball in the basket,” Gators coach Golden said. What he has done for us this year, though, is enough. At crucial junctures, stood up, made game-winning shots, calmed the team down, and delivered.
With 2 minutes and twenty-four seconds remaining in the national semifinal, Clayton scored a driving layup. This came after teammate and fellow All-American Johni Broome—who was nursing an elbow injury—drew a foul call from Australian Alex Condon.
In the first-ever Final Four meeting between SEC teams, Clayton chased down a loose rebound, tipped it back inbounds, and the game-winning shot was at the buzzer. As he began to make his way back into the court, his teammate Alijah Martin stood on the sideline, smiling and nodding to welcome him.
“No matter what, we’re all in this together,” Clayton stated.
Not only did a record fourteen SEC teams qualify for the NCAA Tournament, but seven of those teams advanced to the Sweet 16. The SEC also supplied half of the Elite Eight teams and all four of the top seeds in the Final Four.
On Monday night, the Gators will have an opportunity to become the first SEC team to win the championship since Kentucky in 2012—the Gators won consecutive seasons—and the first since then. Houston defeated Duke 70-67 in the second semifinal, and they’ll take the winning record into the title game.
Gators forward Martin, who was a member of FAU’s Final Four team from 2016 and 2017, contributed 17 points. With twelve, Thomas Haugh managed. Florida is Led to The NCAA Final Game by Clayton
The Tigers were up by eight points at halftime and were the overall seed during their 2nd Final Four match with Pearl.
Following a steal by Rueben Chinyelu, Florida went on a 13-3 run to start the second half, which Clayton capped with a layup. With fifteen and a half minutes remaining, the Gators took a 51-49 lead. Florida is Led to The NCAA Final Game by Clayton
After an 11:02 first quarter in which eight teams took the lead and six more tied the score, Auburn built a nine-point lead heading into halftime and held on until Florida snapped its hot streak with 11 straight points. A total of fifteen lead changes and ten ties occurred.
Despite playing with a partially wrapped left hand due to a thumb injury, Auburn’s Chad Baker-Mazara led the team with 18 points, included four 3-pointers. In the Tigers’ second loss against Florida this season, Broome only scored three points after halftime. He finished with fifteen points on six of fourteen shooting and seven rebounds.
There were cameras all about Broome as he stooped to catch his reaction, and that was before that final buzzer even sounded. Eventually, he got to his feet to shake hands, and as he walked off the field, cameras followed. His face was red from crying, and he pulled up his shirt to wipe it. Florida is Led to The NCAA Final Game by Clayton
Last Sunday’s victory over Michigan State advanced the Tigers through to the Final Four, although Baker-Mazara and Broome were both hurt during the game. In the course of the second half, Broome took a hard fall that bent his right elbow; in the Final Four, he wore a sleeve-covered brace on that arm.
Prior to the game, my elbow was in good shape. It clearly irritated me a little bit in certain places. However, Broome claimed that there was nothing she couldn’t play with. Our desired reactions were conveyed, at least in my opinion. I failed to complete them because I couldn’t capitalize. Florida is Led to The NCAA Final Game by Clayton
