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Like clockwork, Walter Clayton Jr. shows up in the clutch once again to lead Florida to victory

The first two spots in the 2025 Final Four in San Antonio have been claimed after Saturday night’s action with Duke topping Alabama 85-65 and Florida completing a late comeback to take down Texas Tech 84-79. Duke showed its dominance all night long, especially defensively against Alabama, but it was the play of Walter Clayton Jr. down the stretch in the Florida/Texas Tech game that took the headlines from the first two Elite Eight games.

Out in San Francisco, the game started fast, with Kerwin Walton knocking down back-to-back triples to start the game as Texas Tech built an 11-5 lead. Florida responded right back with a 10-0 run, including threes from impact subs Thomas Haugh and Denzel Aberdeen. In a game of runs, the Red Raiders pegged right back to reclaim the lead and go up 24-19 on a three-pointer from Elijah Hawkins. Trailing for over six minutes, Florida went back in front on a dunk from Haugh to make it 32-31 and would go into halftime with a 40-37 lead.

Darrion Williams scored back-to-back buckets early in the second half to push Texas Tech back in front 45-42, and the teams went back and forth for the next seven minutes of the game. With under nine to go, Texas Tech rattled off a 6-0 run in just over a minute to take a 67-57 lead, putting the Red Raiders in firm control.

Texas Tech kept Florida an arms’ length away for the next five minutes, and after a JT Toppin bucket inside, the Texas Tech lead was 75-66 with the clock ticking under three minutes.

Seemingly never phased, this Gators squad was ready for anything and turned it up a notch down the stretch. On the ensuing possession, Haugh grabbed an offensive rebound before drilling a three-pointer to cut the deficit to six. After Williams missed the front end of a one-and-one for Texas Tech, Haugh buried another to bring Florida within three.

Free throw woes had haunted Texas Tech in late-game scenarios already this season (re: vs Iowa State), and it happened once again down the stretch as JT Toppin bricked the front end of another one-and-one.

Now it was Clayton’s turn, and instead of the right corner where he buried UConn last weekend, he went to the left wing, hitting an unbelievable step-back fadeaway three over Williams to tie the game at 75-75. Williams had an answer to push Texas Tech back up a deuce, but Clayton would strike again.

The veteran senior guard, who worked his craft at Iona under Rick Pitino for two years, found himself in the lane with JT Toppin standing in front of him, but never panicked. Instead, he simply dribbled himself out of the lane to the opening at the top of the key, Toppin didn’t chase him out there, so he casually turned around and nailed a three as he stepped outside the arc. The shot swirled in, giving Florida its first lead in over 12 minutes of game time at 78-77.

Williams would have two good looks of his own over the final minute that could’ve kept Texas Tech in it, but neither went down and the Gators made the shots at the free throw line count. In what ultimately became the story of the game, Florida shot 25-of-27 from the free throw line, whereas Texas Tech shot just 7-of-13.

Alijah Martin, Clayton, and Will Richard, the three studs in the Florida backcourt, each went 2-for-2 in the final minute to ice away an 84-79 win. Clayton’s 30 points were a game-high, headlined by his two massive threes to tie the game and take the lead, as well as a 13-of-14 mark from the free throw line.

For Texas Tech, it was ultimately a game that got away from the Red Raiders, who didn’t get enough from the supporting cast behind its three leading scorers. Williams finished with 23 points, Toppin finished with 20, and off the bench Chance McMillian, who was playing in his first game of the NCAA Tournament due to injury scored 14, but no one else converted more than two field goals.

The win for Florida places the Gators in their first Final Four since 2014 under Billy Donovan, and this squad, led by Walter Clayton Jr., seems to have as good of a chance as anyone to cut the nets on April 7.

Other Things to Note:

• The Elite Eight continues on Sunday at 2:20 ET on CBS with Tennessee and Houston meeting in Indianapolis followed by Michigan State and Auburn battling it out in Atlanta