It is Florida’s third national title in program history after previously cutting down the nets in 2006 and 2007. In only his third season with Florida, Todd Golden (39) became the youngest head coach to win a national championship since Jim Valvano (37) in 1983.
Before Golden took over before the 2022-23 season, Florida had not made it past the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament since 2016-17. Golden has led the Gators to two NCAA Tournament appearances in his three seasons at the helm, including the national title on Monday.
Florida had the third-best offense in the country (85.3 PPG) all season. Monday’s title-clinching performance was the complete opposite, as the Gators held Houston to 63 points and got the clutch stop to seal the win in the waning moments.
Three of Florida’s starters (Walter Clayton Jr., Alijah Martin, Will Richard) are all seniors. They were the top three scorers on the team, with Clayton’s 18.5 PPG leading the way all season. Despite an uncharacteristic 11 points (3-of-10 FG) in the title game, Clayton still managed to leave his mark with seven assists and five rebounds on offense and prevented Houston from converting the potential game-winning three in the closing seconds on defense.
Florida has a big hole to fill going into 2025-26 with the departure of its three seniors, as well as the potential loss of sophomore Alex Condon (10.5 PPG, 7.6 RPG), who is projected as a first-round draft pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.
Thomas Haugh (9.9 PPG), Denzel Aberdeen (7.7 PPG), Rueben Chinyelu (six PPG), Sam Alexis (4.7 PPG) and Micah Handlogten (2.7 PPG) averaged 10 minutes or better each game this season. Assuming most of them return, Chinyelu would be the only returning starter back while the rest have some valuable in-game experience.
Depending on the way everything shakes out in the offseason, Florida still could be positioned for success for years to come. Keep in mind, the Gators orchestrated a 36-4 record and won the SEC Tournament title during a historic 14-bid season for the conference.
If Golden can continue to attract players to Gainesville and keep most of his roster intact, this could be the beginning of a turnaround for a program that had not experienced a ton of success prior to his arrival. After all, he has already proven how quickly he can put a championship-winning team together.
It is hard to know how each season is going to look with the transfer portal and the ever-changing collegiate landscape. With its third title in hand, Florida had its “One Shining Moment” this season and will look to add to it as Golden puts more years together.
