Head coach Todd Golden has preached throughout Florida’s young season that the Gators need to construct a full 40-minute performance from start to finish. Despite its undefeated record, there have been spurts in the early minutes and back end of games where UF has seemingly taken its foot off the gas.
Florida won’t be able to get away with this narrative throughout its daunting SEC slate that looms near, but they also couldn’t against a fellow undefeated squad that stood in the way of UF’s first holiday tournament championship since 2021.
The 2024-25 season has been highlighted by the Gators' flashy, and high-scoring backcourt trio of senior guards Walter Clayton Jr., Will Richard and Alijah Martin. But it was sophomore center Reuben Chinyelu who posted an all-around dominant performance. One that was his best while donning the orange and blue.
Behind No. 18 Florida’s big performance from its big man Chinyelu, the Gators (8-0) picked apart Wichita State (6-1) and captured the ESPN Events Invitational Championship title with an 88-51 victory in Kissimmee, Florida, on Friday.
“Just looking back at opening night, I feel like we've gotten a lot better since then. Just more complete, more consistent,” Golden said. “Rueben [Chinyelu] has played really, really well over the last couple days. I thought he had his best game as a Gator [today]. When he provides that backbone of the defense at the rim… I think they were 2-for-20 from two in the first half, and he was a big part of that.”
Another big part of Florida’s success was the small-scaled deficit it faced in the early going. The Gators trailed the Shockers for the first 1:45 of the matchup, but from there, things were anything but competitive.
Offensively, UF was efficient, starting the contest 4-of-7 from the field and 1-of-2 from 3-point range to kickstart a 9-0 run capped off by a 3-pointer from Clayton Jr. that gave the Gators a 9-3 lead just before the first under-16 timeout.
Sophomore forward Alex Condon’s ability to draw fouls this season has been incredibly valuable for the Gators. Condon entered Friday’s contest ranked No. 41 in the nation in fouls-drawn per 40 minutes. He was once again successful in this department against Wichita State, making all four of his free throw attempts en route to a 17-point nine-rebound performance.
“I think we came out with solid energy," Condon said. "We go on these runs, and we were saying in the locker room at halftime, 'We smell blood,' and then it was just full steam ahead. We came out in the second half, as well. Coach emphasized to us not to take the foot off the gas. We did that in the second half, so I was happy with what the team did today.”
However, before the Shockers could even escape back to their locker room for halftime, Florida had ripped off a 16-0 run while WSU was held to 6-of-32 shooting from the field in the first half. Moreover, Wichita State didn’t score a single point for the final 7:26 of the first period and turned it over five times in a four-minute span to allow the Gators to grab a 37-18 lead at halftime.
“I think defense and energy, and that led to a lot of offensive stuff. I thought we played great on the defensive side of the ball, and that just led to everything,” Clayton jr. said.
Florida’s massive run extended to 27-0 as the Gators scored the first 11 points of the second half. From there, UF never looked back as it had their eyes all but set on the tournament trophy. The Gators led by as many as 48 following a 2-point jumper by sophomore guard Urban Klavzar with 5:20 remaining in regulation before Florida emptied its bench.
Clayton Jr. scored a game-high 19 points on 7-of-16 shooting and made five 3-pointers to claim tournament MVP honors. The senior guard also grabbed three rebounds and dished two assists. Chinyelu added a 14-point 11-rebound double-double, the second of his career and first at Florida.
Chinyelu also tallied four blocks and four assists, joining former Gators Joakim Noah and Colin Castleton as the only Gators since 1996 to post a double-double consisting of four blocks and four assists.
“I approach every other game the same way, just being there, being present and do whatever it takes to get my team where we have to be," Chinyelu said. "So I think that's what's happening, just being there, appreciating my teammates and doing what we have to do.”
UF went on to shoot 35-of-78 from the field (45 percent) and 14-of-33 from 3-point range (42 percent) and suffocated the Shockers on the defensive end. Florida held Wichita State to just 37 percent shooting from the field and a blundering 3-for-20 from 3-point range.The Gators also out-rebounded WSU 56-30 and tallied a plus-13 margin offensively.
The victory gives Florida its first 8-0 start since the 2009-10 season, but the road ahead won’t get any easier for the Gators. Next, UF will entertain Virginia in the SEC/ACC Challenge at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center on Wednesday at 7:15 p.m.
“Just really proud of our group,” Golden said. “Hard to win championships. We talked about it before, you get four opportunities generally each year. You get your MTE [multi-team event], your regular season conference championship, your conference tournament championship and the NCAA championship. Getting one in a year is tough to do; we got our first.”
Contact Max Tucker at mtucker@alligator.org. Follow him on X @Max_Tuckr1.
Max Tucker is a junior transfer student at UF. After obtaining his A.A. in Journalism from Santa Fe College in 2023, he chose further his education at Florida's College of Journalism and Communications. Max is currently pursuing his Bachelor of Science in Journalism with a specialization in sports and media. He enjoys golfing and going to the beach with his friends in his free time.
