OAN Staff James Meyers
2:19 PM – Tuesday, April 8, 2025
The Florida Gators won their third NCAA men’s basketball championship in school history with a dramatic 65–63 victory over the Houston Cougars, capping off the season with a nail-biting finale that kept fans on the edge of their seats until the final buzzer.
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This was the first title for the Gators in almost 20 years, after winning back-to-back championships in 2006 and 2007 under former head coach Billy Donovan.
Houston controlled most of the game in front of 66,602 at the Alamodome on Monday night — but Florida was able to overcome another deficit in the tournament to secure the title.
Nevertheless, the Cougars dominated early after tipoff, which led to the lowest-scoring first half of a men’s national title game since 2011. The game plan was working, at least at first, for Houston, which is what head coach Kelvin Sampson had stressed throughout the season.
They held Florida’s superstar guard Walter Clayton Jr. scoreless at halftime, who was averaging 24 points per game throughout the tournament. His first field goal came with just eight minutes left in the second half.
The Gators, who were down by as much as 12 in the second half, were able to chip away and eventually ramp up their elite offense in the second half.
The stellar comeback against arguably the top defense in college basketball soon led to the Gators taking the lead with only 46 seconds left. It was their first lead in the game since they were ahead 8-6 a few minutes into the contest.
Florida’s defense was the surprise, while most experts thought in a low scoring game that the edge would go to Houston. The Cougars did not attempt a shot in the last 1:25 of the game.
In retrospect, it was the Gators’ formidable defense that stood out as the decisive factor in their victory.
Will Richard had blocked a jump shot on Houston that was followed by the Cougars’ Joseph Tugler’s turnover — after a battle underneath the basket with 1 minute and 22 seconds left to play.
The Gators were able to get Houston’s leading scorer, L.J. Cryer, who had 19 points, to turn the ball over with Alex Condon getting the steal.
In the next possession, as Florida trailed 63-62, Alijah Martin was fouled on a shot attempt by Tugler and was able to knock down two clutch free-throws with 46 seconds left to take a 64-63 lead.
Needing another stop, Florida was able to force a turnover after Richard reached in as Emmanuel Sharp drove to the basket and dribbled the ball off his knee — going out of bounds with 26 seconds left in regulation.
Florida’s Denzel Aberdeen was then fouled on the next possession, splitting a pair of free throws and giving the Gators a 65-63 lead.
Houston, with the season on the line, had a play drawn up for Sharp to shoot a three-pointer to win it all. However, for Houston, the last possession of the game was Florida’s best defensive display.
Sharp received the pass from Cryer behind the three point line, and as he went to put up the shot, Clayton was able to close out perfectly — prompting Sharp to drop the ball in mid-air.
By rule, Sharp was not allowed to touch the ball again, hoping teammates would go get the ball. However, time ran out as Florida won in dramatic fashion.
Florida guard Will Richard poured in 18 points and was a vital scorer in the first half to keep the deficit at three at halftime. Big man Alex Condon added a dozen points as well in an overall team effort.
Clayton finished the night with 11 points, seven assists, and five rebounds. He was also named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player.
“We’ve been saying all year our motto is, ‘We all can go!’ We’ve got a team full of guys that can go. It’s not just about me,” Clayton said after the game about his sluggish start. “We’ve got multiple guys that can go get a bucket and do anything. My team helped me hold it down until I was able to go get a bucket.”
Houston was 33-0 on the season when holding opponents to under 70 points, that streak was snapped on Monday night.
Florida’s head coach, Todd Golden, became the second youngest coach ever to win the national title.
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