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Florida holds on for instant classic win over Auburn in Final Four thriller
By Paul Harvey
Published:
The Final Four in San Antonio is off and running, and Florida and Auburn began the competition with the first game of the evening. That matchup between SEC rivals would come down to the final minute in a classic matchup, bu tit is the Gators dancing into Monday’s national title game.
At halftime, Auburn appeared to be in total control of things, in spite of some lackluster 3-point shooting from the Tigers. Johni Broome had 12 first-half points to build a 46-38 lead entering the break.
However, the story of the game immediately shifted in the opening minutes of the second half. Florida delivered a brilliant 11-0 run spearheaded by none other than Walter Clayton Jr. to flip a 9-point deficit into a 2-point lead for the Gators.
Things would stay close until late in this one, but it was another key run by Florida that cemented the victory for Todd Golden’s group. Across a 2-minute stretch in the final 3 minutes of the game, Florida went on a 7-0 run with Clayton scoring 5 points in that run to give the Gators an 8-point cushion. Auburn was unable to rally from there with Florida punctuating a 79-73 win at the final buzzer.
The story of this March Madness continues to be Clayton and his scoring prowess. He shattered Florida’s scoring record for points in a single NCAA Tournament, and he will get one more game to add to his illustrious record in Monday’s title.
As for the Final Four, it was Clayton’s show as he delivered 14 points in the first half to keep Florida afloat and exploded with 20 — including 3 made 3-pointers — after the break. Clayton led all scorers with 34 points, giving him back-to-back games with 30+ points in the Elite Eight and the Final Four.
Alijah Martin (17 points) and Thomas Haugh (12 points) chipped in for Florida as the Gators shot 47.2% from the floor but 50% in the 2nd half.
On the flip side, Auburn’s star big man, Johni Broome, was clearly banged up after an injury vs. Michigan State, and Broome ran out of steam in the 2nd half. After 12 first-half points, Broome had just 3 points and was 1-for-4 from the floor and 1-for-5 from the free-throw line.
Chad Baker-Mazara led Auburn with 18 points, but the rest of the Tigers struggled with their efficiency while finishing 28% from 3-point range. Denver Jones shot 3-for-9 and Tahaad Pettiford was 1-for-6 while missing all 4 of his 3-point attempts.
The loss by Auburn ends its magical season that saw the Tigers spend an extended period of time at No. 1 and earn the No. 1 overall seed for the Big Dance. Bruce Pearl’s group ends the year with a 32-6 overall record, but 2 of those losses came at the hands of Florida.
The win by Florida sends the program into its first national championship game since 2007. The Gators are 2-1 in the final game of the season with wins in 2006 and 2007 to go with a loss in 2000.
Paul Harvey lives in Atlanta and covers SEC football.
