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Florida advances to first national championship game since 2007 with win over Auburn
By Mark Kern
Published:
Florida has been on a magical run over the past month, and it continued on Saturday night as the Gators knocked off SEC rival Auburn, 79-73, to advance to its first national championship since 2007.
The Gators have had some tests during this NCAA tournament run, and this was no different. They struggled defensively to slow down Auburn in the first half, as it was the Tigers that went into the half up 46-38.
However, as has been the case all tournament long, Florida made the plays late when they needed to help the team get the win.
No player has delivered in March in recent times like Walter Clayton, and he was in spectacular fashion on Saturday night. He finished with a game-high 34 points, including 20 in the 2nd half. He passed Joakim Noah for most points in an NCAA Tournament in Florida history, as he now sits at 123 points. Noah’s record from 2006 was 97 points.
Alijah Martin helped take Florida Atlantic to the Final Four 2 seasons ago, and he scored 17 points in helping the Gators move on to Monday night. Florida now awaits the winner of the second Final Four game between Duke and Houston, which will tip off close to 9:15 p.m. ET.
