Florida roar back to break Houston hearts and capture third NCAA title

Yahoo

08-04-2025

Houston forward Joseph Tugler reacts as Florida guard Denzel Aberdeen celebrates during Monday's second half.
Photograph: Brynn Anderson/AP
The Gators looked cooked. Down 12. Their star scoreless. The crowd roaring for the hometown favorites.
And yet, Florida found a way – erasing the deficit, quieting the red sea inside the Alamodome, and capturing the program's third NCAA men's basketball championship.
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Florida 65, Houston 63.
The Gators trailed by double digits in the second half, and didn't lead again until the final minute – but it was enough. Alijah Martin calmly knocked down two free throws with 46.5 seconds left to give Florida a 64-63 edge, their first since 8-6. After a frantic final sequence, the Gators held on to win their first national title since 2007.
It was a comeback born of grit, poise and the kind of big-moment performances that championships require. Florida trailed 42-30 with just under 16 minutes to play, reeling from an 11-2 Houston run that included two LJ Cryer threes and five personal fouls on the Gators in less than four minutes. But they responded with an eight-point burst in a 78-second blur to get within three, then tied it on a Walter Clayton Jr free throw at 48-all.
Clayton, the All-American guard who had been held scoreless in the first half, never found his shooting rhythm – but became the engine of Florida's comeback in other ways. He finished with just 11 points – a far cry from his back-to-back 30-point outbursts against Texas Tech in the Elite Eight and Auburn on Saturday night – but had seven assists and set up multiple easy baskets for Alex Condon and Thomas Haugh as the Gators clawed back.
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Will Richard carried the offense early, scoring 14 of his team-high 18 in the first half and keeping Florida afloat during a ragged opening stretch.
Houston, seeking their first NCAA title in the program's 80-year history, led 31-28 at halftime and looked to be in control early in the second half with an estimated win percentage of more than 90% with 14 minutes left. Cryer finished with a game-high 19 points and Wilson added a spark off the bench with nine points, but the Cougars couldn't deliver the final blow.
Despite the loss, this Final Four delivered everything. Both of Saturday's semi-finals went down to the wire, and Monday's final – with the score tied for the 12th time inside the last minute – capped one of the most thrilling Final Fours in recent memory.
For Florida, the title is their third overall, joining the back-to-back wins in 2006 and 2007. For Golden, just 39, it cements his place in history as the youngest coach to win a national title since North Carolina State's Jim Valvano – whose own stunning victory came at Houston's expense in 1983.
Full report to follow.