Florida Gators star and 2025 NCAA Match Most Excellent Participant Walter Clayton Jr. remains to be speaking to his teammates about what occurred Monday night time in San Antonio.
How might they not after successful a hard-fought nationwide championship with a 65-63 NCAA Match ultimate win over the Houston Cougars?
It got here all the way down to most effort on the ultimate play of the sport through which Houston, to the shock of everybody watching, by no means obtained a shot off for a possible tie or win as the ultimate buzzer sounded.
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Florida Gators guard Walter Clayton Jr. celebrates after successful the 2025 nationwide championship sport on the Alamodome. (Bob Donnan/Imagn Photographs)
However Clayton and his teammates made it tough for the Cougars to get a clear take a look at the ring, together with Clayton’s close-out on Emanuel Sharp past the 3-point line, which iced the victory after the Houston guard couldn’t contact the ball once more after dropping it.
Clayton, working a celebratory “shift” at Elevating Cane’s in Gainesville, Florida, Thursday, spoke to Fox Information Digital about what he noticed in these ultimate seconds.
“I noticed quite a bit occurring,” he defined over the telephone. “We felt like they had been both going to attempt to get one thing for [L.J.] Cryer or [J’Wan] Roberts. So, they ran somewhat motion to the best aspect of the wing. [Florida’s] Will [Richard] and Alijah [Martin] did a very good job of pressuring the ball. Sharp kinda slipped down there to the baseline. I believed he was going to set a again display for Roberts, so I kinda obtained caught down there within the paint somewhat bit.
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“He ended up slipping it, so then simply pondering in my head, ‘Get on the market and contest the shot.’ [I] jumped to the aspect, he ended up kinda pump-faking, throwing the ball down, and I’ll positively say I used to be somewhat stunned they didn’t get a shot off realizing you must get one off within the second.”
Clayton and the Gators should not complaining a shot was by no means put up by Houston. Cougars head coach Kelvin Sampson admitted his personal shock throughout his postgame feedback, saying, “You’ve gotta get a shot” in that state of affairs.
Clayton gave some perception into what the Gators had been on the lookout for on the opposite finish of the ground when play resumed.
“We talked about them operating a flare display for Cryer or a again display for Roberts,” Clayton mentioned. “So, we felt these had been going to be the 2 choices they went to. They ended up throwing us off with that little shock, however we had been prepared for something to occur.”
Houston Cougars guard Emanuel Sharp (21) shoots towards Florida Gators guard Walter Clayton Jr. (1) within the second half within the 2025 nationwide championship sport on the Alamodome. (Robert Deutsch/Imagn Photographs)
Wanting again on the ultimate play, it appeared Houston had a play for Cryer, who took the ball up, to get it once more after some screens had been set. However Florida sniffed it out, and Richard was proper in his face when he obtained the move.
Sharp then ran away from Clayton to satisfy Cryer for a move, and he hoped to get off a 3-pointer for the win. However Clayton timed his soar completely, and the remainder goes down in historical past as Florida received its first title since 2007.
“Man, it feels nice,” Clayton mentioned when requested about being a nationwide champion. “I actually can’t even clarify the sensation. Me and a few of the guys are nonetheless speaking about it. It nonetheless doesn’t really feel actual, but it surely’s only a nice feeling to carry it again to Gainesville.”
Alijah Martin, Walter Clayton Jr. and Thomas Haugh pose in entrance of Elevating Cane’s. (Elevating Cane’s )
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Clayton was with Martin and Thomas Haugh at Elevating Cane’s, as had been tons of of Gators followers celebrating the title.
Clayton can be in the hunt for his subsequent championship within the NBA as a projected lottery decide on this yr’s NBA Draft.
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