UConn center Samson Johnson opened the second half of Sunday’s second-round NCAA Tournament showdown against Florida with four quick points to break a halftime tie and put the Huskies on the path to a potential upset. The two-time reigning national champions proceeded to hold the lead for nearly the entire second half, threatening to eliminate the hottest team in college basketball on the opening weekend of the Big Dance.
Then, Walter Clayton Jr. came alive. Florida’s senior point guard asserted his will down the stretch to power the No. 1 seed Gators to a thrilling 77-75 victory. His heroics included a go-ahead 3-pointer with 2:54 remaining, a pair of clutch free throws and a dagger 3-pointer at the 1:07 mark that effectively buried the Huskies for good.
“At the end, my teammates were trusting me with the ball in my hand to be able to shoot that shot, so I appreciate them for that trust and just sticking with it,” Clayton said.
Clayton scored 15 of his game-high 23 points in the second half, showing why he earned first-team All-American honors from the AP this past week. It was a performance that proved the old adage true: Veteran guard play is essential to NCAA Tournament success.
While Clayton was the evidence of that time-tested wisdom late in the second half, it was another veteran guard who kept the Gators afloat in the first half. Alijah Martin scored 14 of his 18 in the opening 20 minutes as the teams played to a 31-31 stalemate and also came up with a huge second-chance bucket in the final minute.
The Gators seemed a bit rudderless for portions of the second half as the two-time reigning national champions refused to go quietly. But it was yet another veteran guard who kept Florida close, setting the stage for Clayton’s eventual heroics.
Will Richard scored seven straight points for Florida early in the second half after UConn briefly opened up a 40-34 edge. Richard also answered an Alex Karaban 3-pointer with one of his own at the 6:45 mark to draw Florida within 55-54. Richard stealthily finished with 15 points, including 13 in the second half.
“We have trust in each other, the three senior guards,” Richard said. “We have a lot of experience, and we did a great job trying to keep everybody calm throughout those moments.”
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Down the stretch, it was all about Clayton, as he took over with the sort of clutch performance will be reflected upon fondly if the Gators are able to reach the Final Four in San Antonio.
“Obviously over the last eight minutes I thought he did a great job of just kind of taking what the defense gave him, stepping up,” Florida coach Todd Golden said. “His confidence level never wavers regardless of what’s going on and hitting huge shots that allowed us to capitalize and win the game.”
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