Haugh, Clayton Jr. Combine for 50, Gators Use Late Surge to Advance to Final Four
SAN FRANCISCO– A tightly contested contest for most of Saturday’s Elite Eight matchup, the Florida Gators almost saw its season end after the Red Raiders used a 12-2 run halfway through the second half to take a 67-57 lead over Florida, which was the Gators’ largest deficit of the entire tournament.
Rather than backing down, the Gators turned to All-American guard Walter Clayton Jr. while continuing to rely on consistent play from forward Thomas Haugh.
Down 71-61 with 5:24 left, Clayton Jr. hit his first 3-pointer of the night before adding a layup two minutes later to cut Texas Tech’s lead to seven. From there, Haugh, who had sparked Florida’s offense most of the evening, hit a pair of 3-pointers to make the score 75-72 with 2:27 left.
And Clayton Jr. answered.
A step-back 3-pointer with 1:47 left tied the game, and a turnaround 3-pointer a possession later gave Florida a 78-77 lead, its first lead in nearly 16 minutes, as the Gators used an 18-4 run over the final three minutes to advance to its first Final Four in 11 years.
Clayton Jr. finished with 30 points, his second 30-point game of the year, after a pair of free throws to ice the game, and Haugh finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds off the bench.
Known for its defensive improvement from last season the Gators struggled to stop the Red Raiders’ early 3-point shooting as the Red Raiders started 6-for-7 from deep in the game’s first 10 minutes. Additionally, Texas Tech found offensive domination from Darrion Williams, who had 23 points and a team-high three 3-points, and Big 12 Player of the Year JT Toppin, who had 20 points and 11 rebounds.
Meanwhile, turnover issues continued to plague the Gators with 12 turnovers, which marked its fourth-straight game with double-digit turnovers and led to 22 points for Texas Tech.
However, the Gators took advantage of timely shots and consistent free throw shooting. Florida shot 25-for-27 from the charity strike including a perfect 6-for-6 in the game’s final minute. Clayton Jr., himself, went 13-for-14, which accounted for the second-most makes and attempts in a game in his career.
Next Up
The Gators advance to its first Final Four since 2014, making Golden the third head coach in program history to do so after the third-year head coach had not won a tournament game before this season.
Florida will face the winner of No. 1 Auburn-No. 2 Michigan State. Tipoff between the Tigers and Spartans is on Sunday at 5:05 p.m. with television coverage on CBS.
The Final Four in San Antonio, Texas will play on April 5 with the start time to be determined.
