What Happened
SAN ANTONIO — Five down, one to go for the Gators.
Florida defeated Southeastern Conference rival Auburn, 79-73, Saturday night in the Final Four to win its fifth game in a row in the NCAA Tournament. You only need six to win the national championship and the Gators are one away.
The Gators overcame a 46-38 halftime deficit at the sold-out Alamodome behind a game-high 34 points from senior guard Walter Clayton Jr., who hit 11 of 18 shots and 5 of 8 from 3-point range to continue his magical NCAA Tournament. Clayton scored 20 of his points in the second half.
Guard Alijah Martin added 17 points, and sophomore Thomas Haugh added 12 points and seven rebounds as the Gators won their 11th straight overall.
Meanwhile, after trailing 49-40 early in the second half, the Gators used an 11-0 run to take the lead. The Tigers refused to wilt, not with SEC Player of the Year Johni Broome (15 points, seven rebounds) pounding away inside, and guard Chad Baker-Mazara (18 points, 4 of 7 from distance) draining shots.
But with the score tied 57-all midway in the second half, Martin picked up a steal and electrified the crowd for a go-ahead dunk. Martin was just getting started. After Auburn regained the lead briefly, Martin’s dunk over two Auburn players put the Gators up, 66-63, with 5:27 left. Auburn closed to within a point on two occasions late, but Florida held on to reach the national championship game in head coach Todd Golden‘s third season.
What it Means
The Gators, in their sixth trip in program history to the Final Four, advanced to the national championship game for the fourth time. Florida is 2-1 all-time in the national championship, losing to Michigan State in 2000 before winning back-to-back titles in 2006 and 2007.
In the Spotlight
When you are mentioned in the same breath as Larry Bird and the NCAA Tournament, it’s usually good. That is the case for Clayton, whose 32 points against Auburn, coupled with his 30 points in the Elite Eight win over Texas Tech, make him the first player since Bird in 1979 to go for 30 or more points in the Elite Eight and Final Four.
Staggering Statistic
Clayton’s 34 points are the most in program history in a Final Four game, surpassing the 27 from Udonis Haslem in the 2000 national championship game against Michigan State. Clayton has scored 702 points this season and broke Florida’s 55-year-old single-season scoring record, topping Andy Owens‘ 676 points scored in 1969-70. We can keep this up. One more Clayton note: He set Florida’s school record for points in a single NCAA Tournament, now at 123, surpassing Joakim Noah‘s 97 in the 2006 tournament.
Up Next
Florida (35-4) faces the Houston-Duke winner on Monday night for the national championship.