The No.1 seeded Florida Gators (West) outlasted the No.1 seeded Auburn Tigers (South)
behind 34 points from the great Walter Clayton Jr. in what my cousin Camper O’Neal and I
said was a Kobe Bryant-Steph Curry performance for the ages. The Tigers looked to have control at halftime, but had no answers for Clayton Jr. in the second half though they gave it a good effort. Johni Broome was shut down in the second half. Still, the Tigers made it their second Final Four under Pearly, the other being in 2019, and look to have a bright future unless transfer attrition gets them, which it does to a lot of teams. Pearly is 65 now, and the job takes a massive amount of energy, so I know Tiger fans are hopeful he can get his next team over the top and capture it all. Auburn looked like the best team in the country in mid February, but lost some momentum when Florida came to visit and defeated them at Neville Arena. Then, the Crimson Tide upset the Tigers at home the last game of the regular season, and they lost in the semis of the SEC tourney to Tennessee and could never completely get that winning edge back. Still, a great showing by the Tigers and a lot to be proud of if you’re an Auburn Tiger fan. Same with the Crimson Tide. They had a tough matchup with Duke in the Elite Eight and just didn’t have enough size for the Blue Devils. Still, a Final Four appearance (2024) and an Elite Eight in back to back years is a lot to be proud of. Nate Oats is 50 years old and has a lot of good years left. The Tide did lose Grant Nelson, Mark Sears, Chris Young and Clifford Omoruyi, as they ran out of eligibility, and Mouhamed Dioubate transferred, so there is some reloading to do, which Coach Oats is good at.

But it’s the Gators and the Houston Cougars playing for the National Championship tonight at the Alamodome in San Antonio. The game tips off at 7:50 CT, and CBS will televise. The Cougars made an improbable comeback against Duke on Saturday Night after trailing throughout the entire game by double digits much of the time and by 8 with a minute left in the game. When Houston finished off the comeback behind 26 points by marksman guard L.J. Cryer, a clutch three by Emmanuel Sharp and two critical free throws by big man J’Wan Roberts, who was a 61% free throw shooter when he stepped to the line with 19 seconds with Houston trailing 67-66. Roberts calmly drained both shots, and Cooper Flagg, showing his youth and inexperience in big moments as a true freshman, missed a turn around jumper that the Cougars rebounded and Cryer was fouled Cryer, a 92% free throw shooter, sank both shots to clinch the game for the Cougars, 70-67. When the game ended, Beth looked at me and said, “What a gag job.” I agree. The young team of all star freshmen and their young 37 year old third year coach, who has never been a head coach before Duke, couldn’t get the job done in the clutch in a game they were expected to win. Heck, everybody had already started saying this was the greatest team of all time? Come on, Man. Not even close and they proved it. Meanwhile, the Cougars showed their experience and mental toughness under 69 year old veteran coach Kelvin Sampson.

So it’s Florida and Houston playing for it all. Awesome matchup against a prolific offensive team in Florida versus a prolific defensive team in Houston. Who will prevail? Here’s my prediction.

White’s World’s Record from the SEC Tournament till now

SU: 18-10; ATS: 13-14; O/U: 13-9

Tonight

Florida (35-4) vs. Houston (35-4)

Alamodome, San Antonio, 73,086

7:50 CT

CBS

Ian, Bill, Grant, Trace, Gene-Rules

Gators by 1 1/2 O/U: 140 1/2

Florida is the one seed out of the West and Houston is the one seed out of the Midwest. It’s in San Antonio, so the Cougars have a pretty strong home court advantage. The Cougars are a tough out, but I’m going to put my trust in Clayton Jr. and the Gators.

Florida 70, Houston 68

Final Four Most Valuable Player

Walter Clayton Jr.