Auburn found out about UF’s Walter Clayton before rest of college basketball caught on

SAN ANTONIO Nothing Florida point guard Walter Clayton Jr.

does will surprise Auburn during Saturdays Final Four showdown.The Tigers saw Clayton coming before the rest of the college basketball and surely NBA decision-makers might have completely caught on.Claytons effort during an 90-81 upset Feb.

8 on top-ranked Auburns homecourt left an impression.

People knew who he was, Tigers associate head coach Steve Pearl, son of head coach Bruce Pearl, said Thursday.

He just woke everyone up at our game and showed that he could do it on the biggest stage.Walter Clayton Jr.

scores over Texas Techs Chance McMillian in last weekends West Region final in San Francisco.

(Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)Word about Clayton has continued to spread as hes risen to the occasion on an even bigger stage during the NCAA Tournament.

Late-game 3-pointers were the difference during come-from-behind wins against UConn in Round of 32 and Texas Tech in the Elite Eight.Hes having one of those March Madness-type tournaments, Auburn point guard Denver Jones said.

You look back at like, Whoa, he came alive in March.

Thats the tournament hes having.Clayton aims to do it again during the rematch between the Gators (34-4) and Tigers (32-5) at the Alamodome.On Thursday, the 22-year-old played College Football 25 against walk-on Cooper Josefsberg while a crush of media in the Gators locker room looked on, waiting to no avail to get some thoughts from one of the stars of the Big Dance.Chants of DJ Lagway, DJ Lagway by teammates while Clayton maneuvered the controller were a reminder that football is never too far way for UF athletes, even at the Final Four.Yet, Clayton and coach Todd Golden have led the Gators back to basketball prominence during their two seasons together.Florida guard Walter Clayton Jr.

and coach Todd Golden haven proven to be a perfect pair in their two seasons together in Gainesville.

(Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP)Reaching the SEC Tournament final and the NCAA Tournament in 2024 were a major step in right direction, highlighted with a season-ending and season-high 33 points by Clayton during a loss to Colorado in the opening round.Clayton set the tone for a big senior season with 29 points in the opener against USF, one of five games with more than 20 points in UFs first 10 contests.

He had 33 points at Kentucky and 28 vs.

Missouri in early SEC losses.After UF answered with three wins, Clayton injured his ankle during a 20-point loss (64-44) on Feb.

1 at Tennessee.

But he sat out just one game, a win against Vanderbilt, three days before going to Auburn and taking over the game.With fellow guard Alijah Martin sidelined with a hip pointer, Clayton played all 40 minutes and finished with 19 points on 6-for-11 shooting to go with a career-high 9 assists, 6 rebounds and just 3 turnovers.

It was the Tigers first loss on their homecourt where they were 10-0 and winning by an average of 32 points.It kind of cemented what weve known about him for a long time, Golden said Thursday in San Antonio.

Hes an amazing player.

He was banged up ...

he did what he does.

Steps up in the biggest moments.

Just controlled it from start to finish.Things that we internally already knew about him were kind of realized by everybody outside watching that he was, if not the best, one of the best guards in America.

He certainly displayed that over the back half of the season as well.Auburn, a 2.5-point underdog, knows slowing Clayton will be key when the teams square off at 6:09 Saturday night.Walter Clayton Jr.

(1) and Alijah Martin exhale following the Gators win over Texas Tech in the Elite Eight.

(Scott Strazzante/San Francisco Chronicle )In February, Clayton had the Tigers on their heels all game.He made every shot that we didnt defend correctly, Steven Pearl said.

We just had a couple of execution flaws on the defensive end, and he made us pay for every single one of them and had one of his better all-around games of the year.We let him be way too comfortable.

Thats something where we got to make an adjustment.It still might not be enough.Clayton is one a roll only a few remaining players, save Dukes Cooper Flagg or Auburns Johni Broome, have come close to matching.The 6-foot-3, 195-pound Lake Wales native has averaged 20.6 points and 4.5 assists while hitting 43% from 3-point range during the Gators 10-game winning streak.He does whatever we need him to do, said UF reserve Denzel Aberdeen, a guard from Orlando Dr.

Phillips.

If he needs to shoot, he shoots.

If he needs to playmake, he playmakes.

We all play hard and for each other, but we know he does what he does and at the end of the day its going to happen for us.Edgar Thompson can be reached at [email protected] next ...No.

1 seed Florida vs.

No.

1 seed AuburnWhen: 6:09, Saturday, Alamodome in San AntonioTV/radio: WKMG-6; WDBO 580 AMFavorite: Florida by 2.5 points.

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