Why Florida, not Auburn, is SEC's best shot at beating Duke in March Madness Final Four

USA Today

04-04-2025

Why Florida, not Auburn, is SEC's best shot at beating Duke in March Madness Final Four To beat Duke, you need to match fire with fire. Florida's Walter Clayton Jr. brings the heat, and veteran guards shine brightest in March Madness.
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See how Gainesville bar MacDinton's reacted to Florida basketball clinching a spot in the Final Four
The Gators defeated Texas Tech 84-79 Saturday night in San Francisco in the March Madness Elite Eight to clinch a spot in the Final Four for the first time since 2014.
Bravo, SEC.
The nation's best basketball conference supplied half the teams in the Final Four. Througout March Madness, the SEC lived up to the hype, taking the Sweet 16, Elite Eight and now Final Four by storm.
Now, ready for the hardest part? Finish the journey with a national championship. The SEC's last national title came in 2012, when Kentucky cut down nets.
Oddsmakers point to Duke as the Final Four favorite, and if you've watched the Blue Devils throughout the tournament, you know that's a fair projection.
On this basketball-themed edition of "SEC Football Unfiltered," a podcast from the USA TODAY Network, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams assess the Final Four and make their final predictions. They also debate which SEC team, Auburn or Florida, would have a better chance of taking down Duke, if the Blue Devils beat Houston to advance to the national championship.
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Which SEC team in Final Four has better chance of beating Duke?
Toppmeyer: Florida. I trust veteran guards to become the stars of March Madness. To that end, Florida senior Walter Clayton Jr. has been fabulous this tournament. Florida is no one-trick pony. It's armed with a lineup of players who can score in double figures, and the Gators play well at both ends of the court. But, in those clutch moments, you want the ball in Clayton's hands. He's proven he can deliver.
Adams: Florida. Clayton's heroics are becoming one of the top storylines of this tournament. How about that shot he hit against Texas Tech, when he gave up a shot in the paint to step out and drill a crucial 3-pointer? Now, that's one shining moment. To beat Duke, you need to match fire with fire. Clayton brings the heat, and the Gators are equipped with an array of 3-point shooters that can bring the full assault. (Ask Texas Tech for details.)
Who will win the national championship?
Toppmeyer: Houston over Florida. Houston is loaded with veterans who've been through the fires. No team defends better than the Cougars, and they have plenty of shot-makers, too.
Adams: Florida over Duke. The stars shine brightest in the NCAA Tournament. Clayton and his Gators will be the lasting story of this tournament, barely edging Duke and Cooper Flagg.
Later in the episode
∎ The hosts dissect another Tennessee tournament run that ended before the Final Four. Have the Vols hit their ceiling under Rick Barnes?
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Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network's national college football columnist. John Adams is the senior sports columnist for the Knoxville News Sentinel. Subscribe to the SEC Football Unfiltered podcast, and check out the SEC Unfiltered newsletter, delivered straight to your inbox.