On April 7, 2025, the championship for the 2025 Men’s March Madness featured a nail-biting finish, as the West first seed Florida Gators came back in the second half of the game to beat the Midwest first seed Houston Cougars 65-63, thanks to the Gators’ late defensive stop, denying Houston of their first championship in team history.
According to ESPN, The University of Florida had won all its five games in this year’s tournament before reaching the championship, as they dismantled Norfolk State by a score of 95-69 in the first round. They dethroned the University of Connecticut in the second round by a score of 77-75, who had won the past two tournaments. They notched another victory in the Sweet 16 by taking out Maryland with a score of 87-71. Their Elite Eight Matchup against Texas Tech saw them winning 84-79 behind a late surge from the Gators offense. The Gators were able to eliminate the South first seed Auburn Tigers in the Final Four behind Florida senior player Walter Clayton Jr’s 34 points.
Houston’s path to the championship also had them play five games before this. Their first round game ended with a final score of 78-40 against Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, resulting in a win. They won their second round game 81-76 over Gonzaga. Their Sweet 16 game against Purdue ended in a close 62-60 win. They beat the University of Tennessee in the Elite Right with a comfortable 69-50 win. The Final Four saw them use a furious late game comeback to beat the East first seed Duke Blue Devils and star player Cooper Flagg.
The first half of the championship game consisted of back and forth sequences between the Gators and the Cougars, as both teams were playing with good offense and defense. However, the Houston defense guarded Clayton very well, as he was not able to score in this half. The Cougars went into the halftime break with a 31-28 lead.
Houston started the second half with quick scoring, as they jumped out to a 12-point lead in the first four minutes of the half, up 42-30. Clayton scored his first points of the game five minutes into this half. Seven minutes later, a Clayton free throw tied the game at 48 a piece. The back and forth contest continued as the final two minutes of the game became very intense. Florida’s Denzel Aberdeen made a free throw with 19 seconds left to extend the lead by two points, at 65-63. Houston was on its last chance, as they needed two points to tie it and three points to lead.
Houston’s Emanuel Sharp attempted a three point shot, but good defense by Clayton had Sharp fake the shot and drop the ball, and by rule, Sharp wasn’t allowed to touch it because he would be called for a travel violation. The ball dropped and the players went for it. Florida’s Alex Condon came up with the ball and the clock ran to zero, as Florida claimed the championship.
As the Gators celebrate their championship victory, the college basketball season comes to an end and heads into the offseason.
