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Florida Gators Flashback: Three key moments in UF's win over Norfolk State

On3 imageby:Keith Niebuhr•03/21/25•

On3Keith

NCAA Basketball: NCAA Tournament First Round-Norfolk State at Florida
Mar 21, 2025; Raleigh, NC, USA; Florida Gators guard Alijah Martin (15) makes a basket during the second half against the Norfolk State Spartans at Lenovo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

The No. 3-ranked Florida Gators are moving on in the NCAA Tournament. UF, the top seed in the West Region, defeated 16th-seeded Norfolk State 95-69 in a first-round matchup Friday night in Raleigh, N.C. The game was a rout from the start as the Gators improved to 31-4 by winning their seventh straight game. All-American Florida guard Walter Clayton led the Gators with 23 points. Another Gators guard, Alijah Martin, added 17.

Here were some key moments in the game:

The opening jump ball

Florida center Rueben Chinyelu won the tip and the Gators were off to the races. Just 31 seconds into the game, Clayton took a pass from Martin and knocked down a 3-point shot from five feet behind the arc with a defender in his face. This was his 57th straight game with a 3-pointer and sparked a 13-2 start for Florida. Clayton scored 10 points in the fist six minutes of the game Friday. The Gators led by as many as 32 points in the opening half and went on cruise control after that.

The steal, the pass, the and-one

With Florida leading 19-5 in the first half, the Gators put together one of many pretty sequences in this win. It started with a steal by Florida guard Denzel Aberdeen, who then quickly got the ball to Clayton. After Clayton raced past mid court, he spotted Gators forward Thomas Haugh sprinting toward the basket. Haugh caught Clayton’s picture-perfect pass and made a tough layup as he was being fouled. He sank the free throw to complete the and-one and Florida went up 22-5 with 13:41 left. It was just one play, but it showed just how deadly Florida can be on both ends of the court.

A dunk with authority … when the Gators had been a little flat

Even though Florida was ahead by 22 with under seven minutes left in the game, the Gators hadn’t played their best ball in the second half. At times, they simply looked flat. At other times, Norfolk State outhustled UF. But after a missed free throw by forward Alex Condon, Florida came back to life. The ball was tipped into the air, and grabbed by Gators guard Will Richard. He passed to Clayton, who then threw it to Martin in the corner. Martin flew past one defender and he put down a thunderous dunk as Chinyelu sealed his man under the basket. Just like that, the Gators regained some of their energy as they went ahead 81-57 with 6:29 remaining.

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