The Florida Gators men’s basketball team was ranked just inside the preseason AP Top 25 Poll at No. 21 in October. However, when the final buzzer sounded in the national championship game, the Gators were the last team standing.
On April 7, the Gators climbed the ladder at the Alamodome in San Antonio after a barrage of orange and blue confetti fell amid the initial celebration. The result sent Florida fans in Gainesville into a celebratory frenzy.
Nevertheless, Florida’s run through the NCAA Tournament was historic and will be remembered by nostalgic alumni and sports fans for years to come. But UF’s March Madness games aren't the only ones worth remembering. The Gators tied the record for most wins in a single season in program history with 34. Here’s a timeline of some of Florida’s most notable games and moments from this season.
Dec. 17: Florida 90, North Carolina 84
It was time for Florida’s first test against a Power Four opponent. With that came a high-flying back-and-forth affair against North Carolina in a not-so-neutral site game played in Charlotte. The Gators shot 53% in the first half and built a 17-point lead, though the Tar Heels stormed back.
UNC ripped off an 11-0 run to open the second half and closed within a point of the Gators before UF sophomore forward Alex Condon gave Florida some breathing room with a 3-pointer to push their lead to seven. From there, the Tar Heels fought back once more, this time taking the lead with under eight minutes left via an and-one layup by senior guard RJ Davis.
Just as Florida was on the brink of being handed its first loss of the season, senior guard Alijah Martin buried a game-tying 3-pointer in the game’s final minutes and made two free throws at the 1:49 mark to tie the score once more. Then, UF sophomore forward Thomas Haugh and senior guard Will Richard each drained a pair of game-sealing free throws with under 10 seconds left to secure the win.
“That's really the first time all year where we've allowed a team to dictate the terms of the game,” Florida head coach Todd Golden said. “Credit to them, though. I thought they were really a lot more aggressive defensively and then trying to get downhill driving the ball in the second half.”
Jan. 7: Florida 73, Tennessee 43
The Gators hit a bump in the road after losing two of their first three games in SEC play to Kentucky and Missouri. To avoid dropping a third, Florida was tasked with taking on the then-No. 1 Tennessee Volunteers. The Vols also brought in the nation’s top defense. However, it was Florida who smothered top-ranked Tennessee into 21% shooting from the field and just 13.8% from 3-point range.
It was never close — and the Gators never trailed. UF held the Volunteers to 31 points below their season average and throttled UT in front of a crazed crowd 73-43 at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. It was the most lopsided defeat of a No. 1 team in the AP poll in 57 years, and marked just the third time in program history that Florida knocked off a team atop the rankings.
"We just wanted to protect our home court,” Martin said. “The place was rocking. [It was] definitely something fun to play in, and credit everybody for the preparation for Tennessee.”
Feb. 8: Florida 90, Auburn 81
With the absence of Martin due to a hip injury, Florida desperately needed its other key players to rally if it wished to take down yet another then-No. 1 team. Senior guard Walter Clayton Jr. was up to the task, playing all 40 minutes while scoring 19 points and equaling his career-high in assists with nine. UF packed in five other double-digit scorers as No. 6 Florida went into “The Jungle” and defeated top-ranked Auburn, notching the first road win over a No. 1 team in program history.
Clayton’s first points of the game pushed him over 1,000 career points as a Gator. Condon followed with a 17-point, 10-rebound double-double. However, Auburn came out hot, making eight of its first 14 field goals to take a 15-5, then 20-11 lead.
Meanwhile, Florida opened an ice-cold two-for-11 from the floor before mustering a gritty comeback. The Gators finished the first half on a 23-7 surge to take a 10-point lead into halftime and saw it grow to 19 less than five minutes into the second half. Junior guard Denzel Aberdeen, who started in place of Martin, delivered a dagger 3-pointer on a three-shot possession that started an 8-2 run and put the nail in Auburn’s coffin.
March 5: Florida 99, Alabama 94
As the NCAA Tournament loomed near, two of the top teams in the SEC fighting for a coveted No. 1 seed in The Big Dance clashed. Many outlets already had Florida projected to be on the top-seed line, though a win in Tuscaloosa would’ve been an emphatic boost to what was already an impressive resume. No. 7 Alabama played host to No. 5 Florida and the Gators got a big boost with Condon’s return from an ankle injury. And what a showing out party it was for the Australian native.
Condon scored a career-high 27 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to go along with 22 points and eight assists from Clayton. The first half looked more like a track meet than a basketball game, with the Gators leading by as many as seven and Bama by four, before Florida took a 41-40 advantage into halftime. The Tide jumped out to a 52-47 lead in the second half but a fastbreak flush by Richard started a 13-3 run for the Gators who never looked back.
March 16: Florida 86, Tennessee 77 – SEC Tournament championship
Little did Florida know, this would be the first of three times it would get to cut down the nets. For just the fifth time ever, the Gators captured an SEC Tournament championship, marking the first basketball title of any kind since 2014. It was the third meeting this season between the two sides, with the regular-season series split 1-1. But the stakes for this matchup were certainly higher with hardware on the line.
Clayton led the way, scoring 22 points and sinking four 3-pointers with a pair of late daggers. By the time the confetti fell in Florida’s favor, four other players joined Clayton as double-digit scorers. The Gators, who became winners of 12 of their last 13 games, broke open a 16-16 tie with a 16-4 run late in the first half before taking a 39-30 lead into the break. UF held a 13-point lead with 10 minutes remaining until UT senior guard Jordan Gainey single-handedly ripped off an 8-0 run.
Tennessee got within five three more times to which Clayton responded with a 3-pointer, two free throws and another deep ball. His clutch shots down the stretch helped Florida’s lead reach a game-high 14 with four minutes left before the Gators captured the SEC Tournament title.
April 7: Florida 65, Houston 63 (national championship)
On the night of April 6, UF students pitched tents outside The Swamp Restaurant in Gainesville for a national championship watch party. As the fanbase anxiously waited, Florida’s “One Shining Moment” instead almost ended in the agony of defeat. The Gators took on a defensive powerhouse in Houston, and many questioned whether UF would be able to score on the feisty Cougars defense. Instead, the roles were reversed.
With over 60,000 fans on the edge of their seats in the Alamodome, the Gators fought back from a 12-point deficit and secured their third national championship in program history. Through the first five NCAA Tournament games, Clayton averaged 24.6 points per game, but was held to just 11 against Houston.
Stepping up in his place was Richard who scored a team-high 18 points. As a result, Florida’s resilient effort didn’t just put its basketball program back on the map, it took it to the pinnacle of the sport.
“It's just a testament to who we are as a team," Richard said. “I feel like we're going to fight ‘til the end and do whatever it takes to give ourselves a chance to win.”
Contact Max Tucker at mtucker@alligator.org. Follow him on X @Max_Tuckr1.
Max Tucker is a senior transfer student at UF. After obtaining his A.A. in Journalism from Santa Fe College in 2023, he chose to 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.
