Live Blog: Florida Gators 79, Auburn Tigers 73
SAN ANTONIO — The Florida Gators punched their ticket to the national championship game with their 79-73 comeback win over the Auburn Tigers in the Final Four on Saturday. UF rallied from a 46-38 halftime deficit with an 11-0 run early in the second period and 9-0 run in the final two and half minutes.
Walter Clayton Jr. led all scorers with 34 points, including 5-for-8 from downtown, for his second-straight 30-point performance in the NCAA Tournament and third of his career. Alijah Martin (17) and Thomas Haugh (12) also scored in double figures and made some huge plays down the stretch along with Clayton.
Below are live updates from the rematch between the Gators and the Tigers.
Florida vs. Auburn Live Blog
SCORE UPDATE: Florida 69, Auburn 68 (3:20)
The Gators can’t get a call to go their way but they’re still battling and hanging onto this lead. Some huge plays by Walter Clayton Jr. and Alijah Martin to keep UF in front.
SCORE UPDATE: Florida 60, Auburn 58 (7:47 2H)
The Gators are now outscoring Auburn in second-chance points (9-8) and had their first fastbreak points on Alijah Martin’s go-ahead dunk. The Tigers have no field goals in the last 3:38.
SCORE UPDATE: Auburn 57, Florida 54 (11:12 2H)
The Tigers regained the lead with a 6-0 run as UF went 3:41 without a score before Walter Clayton Jr.’s fourth 3-pointer of the game. He’s up to 22 points, leading all scorers.
SCORE UPDATE: Florida 49, Auburn 49 (15:57 2H)
The Gators have tied this thing up with a 9-0 run by their trio of senior guards. The Tigers missed their last four shots and haven’t scored in 2:27.
HALF: Auburn 46, Florida 38
Walter Clayton Jr. leads all scorers with 14 points and Alijah Martin has 10, but the Gators have zero fastbreak points and just two assists.
The Tigers are winning the frontcourt battle with a 26-14 advantage in the paint, a 17-16 edge on the glass and 8 second-chance points.
Auburn shot 52% in the first half (17-33) and 27% from beyond the arc (4-15). The Gators are shooting 44% (12-27) and 40% from 3 (4-10).
SCORE UPDATE: Auburn 33, Florida 29 (3:30 1H)
Both teams shooting 48% with three 3-pointers apiece, but the Tigers hold a 20-12 edge in the paint and UF has just two assists in the first half after 22 in the first meeting.
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SCORE UPDATE: Auburn 29, Florida 25 (7:34 1H)
After five straight misses, the Tigers have made their last three shots for a 7-2 run to take another four-point lead. UF committed two turnovers during that stretch on poor passes.
SCORE UPDATE: Auburn 20, Florida 18 (11:33 1H)
Five ties and six lead changes so far. Auburn’s Johni Broome is getting the better of Alex Condon early on. The Tigers have a 12-6 edge with points in the paint right now.
SCORE UPDATE: Auburn 16, Florida 14 (14:31 1H)
A great back-and-forth start with both teams shooting 55%. The Gators already have a pair of triples, two from Walter Clayton Jr. and one by Alijah Martin after a fantastic block by Thomas Haugh.
Florida Gators starters
| No. | Player | Position | Height/Weight | Class | Min. | Pts. | Rebs. | Misc. |
| 1 | Walter Clayton Jr. | Guard | 6-2, 195 pounds | Sr. | 32.5 | 18.1 | 3.6 | 4.2 ast |
| 15 | Alijah Martin | Guard | 6-2, 210 pounds | Gr. | 30.2 | 14.5 | 4.6 | 2.3 ast |
| 5 | Will Richard | Guard | 6-4, 206 pounds | Sr. | 31.5 | 13.3 | 4.4 | 1.6 stl |
| 21 | Alex Condon | Forward | 6-11, 230 pounds | So. | 24.9 | 10.8 | 7.7 | 2.3 ast |
| 9 | Rueben Chinyelu | Center | 6-10, 260 pounds | So. | 18.9 | 6.1 | 6.5 | 0.9 blk |
Auburn Tigers starters
| No. | Player | Position | Height/Weight | Class | Min. | Pts. | Rebs. | Misc. |
| 2 | Denver Jones | Guard | 6-4, 205 pounds | Sr. | 28.0 | 10.9 | 2.0 | 2.6 ast |
| 13 | Miles Kelly | Guard | 6-6, 190 pounds | Sr. | 28.1 | 11.4 | 1.7 | 2.3 3fg |
| 10 | Chad Baker-Mazara | Forward | 6-7, 180 pounds | Sr. | 25.5 | 12.2 | 3.1 | 2.7 ast |
| 4 | Johni Broome | Forward | 6-10, 240 pounds | Sr. | 30.1 | 18.7 | 10.9 | 2.9 ast |
| 44 | Dylan Cardwell | Center | 6-11, 255 pounds | Gr. | 20.9 | 4.9 | 5.0 | 1.4 blk |
Final Four coverage
* Florida Gators vs. Auburn: Keys to the game, matchup breakdown
* Mentor vs. Protégé: Todd Golden faces Bruce Pearl in Final Four
* Fake Headbutt, Real Dog: Florida unleashes Alijah Martin vs. Auburn
* Micah Handlogten meets Auburn again in Final Four after injury
* Gators Online Show: Final Four Preview of Florida vs. Auburn
* Gators Online picks: Florida Gators vs. Auburn Tigers at Four Four
* Expert picks for the Florida Gators-Auburn Tigers national semifinal
* Get to know Auburn, the Florida Gators’ Final Four opponent
* Diving into the first Florida Gators-Auburn matchup
* How the Florida Gators have fared in national semifinal games
* Everything Todd Golden said Friday as Florida prepares for Auburn
* Bruce Pearl revisits what went wrong in Auburn’s loss to Florida
* What Auburn is saying about Final Four opponent Florida Gators
* Florida vs. Auburn: How to watch, betting lines, game notes
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