Florida’s Walter Clayton Jr. emerging as March Madness star
Even when he’s not having one of his better games, Florida Gators guard Walter Clayton Jr. keeps stepping up when it matters most.
On Sunday, the No. 1 seed Gators faced the No. 8 seed UConn Huskies in the second round of the NCAA Tournament’s West Region. In the final three minutes of the game, Florida turned to Clayton.
With the Huskies leading 61-59, Clayton drove to his right and knocked down a three-pointer with 2:54 left.
Then, with 1:06 left, Gators forward Alex Condon handed the ball off to Clayton. He dribbled to his right and hit another three while falling away, giving Florida a 70-64 lead. The long shot helped seal a 77-75 win for Florida.
Clayton scored 23 points, but his performance against UConn could be considered somewhat sloppy. The 2024-25 first-team All-American committed five turnovers and four fouls and shot 6-of-14 from the field.
However, with Clayton continuing to establish himself as a trustworthy option in close games, that seems irrelevant for the Gators.
“He’s been doing this all year,” CBS Sports analyst Clark Kellogg, a former Ohio State star, said in a postgame segment. “When [the Gators] need a basket, they run a lot of stuff to get his shot open. He can be open or make tough, well-defended shots.”
With the win, the Gators (32-4) have made their first Sweet 16 appearance since the 2016-17 season. They’ll face No. 4 seed Maryland (27-8).
