Officials hit Florida with questionable bench technical foul vs. Houston amid second-half spiral

The officials called a pretty good game in Monday night’s NCAA National Championship Game between Florida and Houston. But, things got a bit controversial when a bench technical was assessed to the Florida bench, after their assistant coaches were yelling at the referees. Their coaches were yelling at the referees, and they had seen enough, hitting them with a technical.

It was a pivotal call and allowed Houston to push their lead to double digits. Florida struggled to manufacture points for much of the game, but finally came to life late in the second half.

The Florida bench was assessed a technical foul in the National Championship Game. 🏀🦓👮 pic.twitter.com/FNCLECo3ZC

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) April 8, 2025

Luckily for Florida, Houston got in some serious foul trouble with less than nine minutes left in the game. JoJo Tugler and Ja’Vier Francis both picked up four fouls with over eight minutes left in the second half. Houston was immediately forced to switch to a smaller, four guard lineup. And the Gators began to take advantage.

With 7:13 remaining in the second half, Reuben Chinyelu spiked the ball off the court after he was upset about a foul call. And officials immediately hit him with a technical foul. It was once again, a very pivotal play in the second half. Houston went up 51-48 after connecting on their free throws.

Walter Clayton Jr. quickly answered at the other end, tying it up 51-51 with just over seven minutes left in the game. Clayton went up for a layup, made it, and got fouled, connecting on his free throw. Both Houston and Florida continued to trade baskets for the next few minutes, playing some extremely high-level basketball. It was a game that was worthy of what’s been a very impressive 2025 NCAA Tournament.

There was a 12-minute stretch where Florida outscored Houston in the second half, managing to tie the game at 60-60. The Cougars led by as many as 12 points at one point, but the Gators battled back late in the second half. Both teams were in the bonus with 2:05 left in the game. Houston’s JoJo Tugler fouled out with 46.5 seconds remaining in the game.

Florida drilled two critical free throws to go up 65-63 with 19.7 seconds left. And the Gators managed to stifle Houston in the final seconds, as the Cougars lost control of the ball. Emanuel Sharp had a potential chance at a three-pointer, but Walter Clayton Jr. was out on him, contesting it in mid-air. That led to a scramble for the ball in the final seconds, since Sharp couldn’t touch it. And Florida recovered it as time expired, lifting the Gators to the 2025 NCAA Men’s National Championship, 65-63.