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Walter Clayton Jr. is having an NCAA Tournament for the ages. Florida now just needs him to deliver one more time.
The Gators finally are getting a shot at another national championship after another special performance from their All-America guard.
Clayton scored 34 points with five 3-pointers, giving him the first consecutive 30-point games this deep in the tourney since Larry Bird, and Florida beat Southeastern Conference rival Auburn 79-73 in the Final Four on Saturday night. The Gators are going to the national championship game for the first time since their titles in 2006 and 2007.
“Clayton was the difference. He was just flat out the difference,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. “We couldn’t contain him down that end.”
No team has against the leading scorer in this NCAA Tournament. He is the first player with 30-point games both the the Elite Eight and semifinals since Bird for Indiana State in 1979, according to ESPN Stats.
“He’s poised, calm and collected, confident in himself. We have that confidence in him,” Gators guard Will Richard said. “We see him practice, see his work ethic. We’re glad everybody else is getting to see him do it in a game.”
The Gators (35-4) got this far only after Clayton rallied them twice in this tournament. He scored 13 of his 23 points in the final eight minutes in a 77-75 win in the second round that ended UConn’s pursuit of a third national title in a row, then had two late 3s last Sunday when they came from nine points down with less than three minutes left to beat Texas Tech.
“I’m just used to seeing him put the ball in the basket, I guess,” Gators coach Todd Golden said. “But he’s done what he’s done all year for us. In big moments, stepped up, hit huge shots, settled our team down and made winning plays when we needed it the most.”
Clayton had a driving layup with 2:24 left in the national semifinal, on the possession right after Australian big man Alex Condon drew a charge against Johni Broome, the other All-America player in the game — and who was dealing with an injured right elbow.
