RALEIGH, N.C. — Walter Clayton Jr. scored 23 issues and sparked top-seeded Florida’s late-game splurge to oust two-time protecting champion UConn 77-75 within the West Area’s 2nd spherical on Sunday afternoon.
The Gators regarded disjointed every now and then on offense prior to racking up 18 issues around the recreation’s ultimate 3 mins. The eighth-seeded Huskies gave the impression poised to drag off an disillusioned prior to their 13-game successful streak in NCAA Match video games got here to a detailed.
Alijah Martin’s 18 issues and Will Richard’s 15 additionally helped carry the Gators to victory.
Florida (32-4) will meet No. 4 Maryland within the Candy 16 on Thursday in San Francisco. The Terrapins eked out a 72-71 win over Colorado State later Sunday. The Gators are advancing to the second one weekend of the match for the primary time since 2017.
“The time was once now for us to take that subsequent step,” Florida trainer Todd Golden stated. “Once more, Florida basketball again the place it belongs. Being within the Candy 16 is a smart step in the correct course.”
Liam McNeeley poured in 22 issues, Alex Karaban had 14 and Samson Johnson added 10 to tempo the Huskies (24-11), who had a late-game break out in opposition to Oklahoma two days previous within the first spherical. McNeeley’s ultimate shot was once a made 3-pointer prior to the buzzer, nevertheless it was once too overdue for UConn to get some other ownership.
“For it to finish … they have been going to have to place us down,” UConn trainer Dan Hurley stated. “There may be honor in the way in which we went out.”
Florida was once at risk of changing into the primary No. 1 regional seed on this 12 months’s match to be eradicated, only a week after successful the Southeastern Convention match.
The Gators trailed with 3 mins to play prior to Clayton’s 3-pointer sparked the late-game surge. The Huskies drew even at 64-64 on a triple by means of Solo Ball prior to Alex Condon’s go-ahead loose throw with 1:52 to play.
Clayton then added two foul pictures and a 3-pointer, all at once placing the Gators up 70-64 with a show of the firepower the workforce has proven all the way through the season.
“We knew this recreation wasn’t going to be simple,” Clayton stated. “They have got were given a championship pedigree, back-to-back champions. That is a super workforce. They’d that have. We knew it wasn’t going to be simple. We stored our composure.”
UConn clung to a slender lead for many of the 2nd part. The Huskies’ edge was once 61-58 with lower than 4 mins to play.
Neither workforce led by means of greater than six issues for the sport’s first 59 mins. Florida had just one timeout final for the sport’s ultimate 11 mins.
The Huskies went up 52-46 on Tarris Reed’s dunk with lower than 10 mins final. The Gators answered, scoring the following 5 issues.
Tied at 31 at halftime, courtesy of Hassan Diarra’s step-back 3-pointer for the Huskies, the sport had normally been performed at UConn’s most well-liked pace. Martin had 14 issues by means of the damage, however the Gators have been charged with 9 turnovers.
Each groups made 4 3-point baskets within the first part, although the Huskies took seven extra makes an attempt.
UConn opened the sport capturing 3-for-16, however trailed most effective 11-8 at that juncture.
–Bob Sutton, Box Stage Media