RALEIGH, N.C. – The champs, it turns out, weren’t easy to “put down.” But after two NCAA men’s tournaments and 13 consecutive wins, Florida was up to the task of beating UConn.
And it was every bit as difficult as Huskies coach Dan Hurley predicted it would be.
The Gators, who didn’t lead in the second half until the final three minutes, finally pulled away for a 77-75 victory as Walter Clayton, Jr., buried a series of cold-blooded shots to advance Florida to the Sweet 16 of the West regional.
Clayton, who was arguably the best guard in the SEC this year, finished with 23 points on 6-of-14 shooting. But Clayton’s 3-pointer from the right wing with 2:53 remaining to finally put Florida on top and then second one from the same spot on the floor with 1:07 left, were the kind of clutch shots the Gators needed to overcome a UConn team that looked like it was ready to pull the tournament’s biggest upset for most of the second half.
Florida, a 9.5-point favorite and a popular pick to win the national championship after it dominated the SEC tournament last week, fell behind by as many as six points multiple times in the second half and struggled both with turnovers (12) and free throws (22-of-34).
But UConn couldn’t quite land a knockout blow, and Florida’s offense got hot at just the right time. The Gators made 54.2 percent of their field goals in the second half and 5-of-8 threes. Alijah Martin had 18 points for the Gators, who held UConn to 24-of-64 shooting and 8-of-29 from the 3-point line.
Before the game, Hurley was sanguine about the potential end of UConn’s run, knowing the quality of team the Huskies were facing. His only hope was that UConn’s postseason experience and pride in the jersey would force someone to play great basketball to end their streak after an up-and-down regular season.
“I think there’s honor in getting to the round of 32 and making someone put you down to end this run we’ve been on,” he said.
UConn indeed made it tough, but Florida came up with the goods when it mattered.