NBA Legend Sounds Off After Gators Win: 'The Best Team Didn't Win Tonight'

NBA legend Charles Barkley didn't mince words after the Florida Gators' comeback win over Texas Tech to advance to the Final Four.

Mar 29, 2025; San Francisco, CA, USA; Texas Tech Red Raiders forward Darrion Williams (5) reacts after losing to the Florida Gators during the West Regional final of the 2025 NCAA tournament at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Eakin Howard-Imagn Images | Eakin Howard-Imagn Images

Moments after the Florida Gators finished a comeback win over Texas Tech, securing a spot in the Final Four for the first time since 2014, NBA legend Charles Barkley shared his opinion on the result of the game.

“Sometimes the best team doesn't win, and that is what happened here," Barkley said on the CBS postgame show. “The best team didn’t win tonight.”

While Florida trailed Texas Tech for the majority of the second half, they finished the game on an 18-4 run in the final three minutes, storming back into the lead and now into the next round in San Antonio.

Similarly to their come from behind win against UCONN, their offense largely came from Walter Clayton Jr. and his clutch shooting. The All-American hit a pair of 3-pointers in the final minutes to take the lead and finished with a game-high 30 points.

WALTER CLAYTON ARE YOU SERIOUS?! 🤯#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/5YeSqK5khr

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 30, 2025

While the Red Raiders held the biggest lead of the game at 10 points, Florida finished shooting better from the field and from 3-point land, got to the line 14 more times, secured seven more rebounds and had the leading scorer of the game in Clayton Jr.

"He's a hard cover. He's just so difficult," Texas Tech head coach Grant McCasland said. "He can hurt you in so many different ways. He's dynamic at shooting. But he's crafty in his change of pace. And they do such a good job of moving the ball."

Despite that, Barkley mentioned the Red Raiders toughness in the paint and relentless offensive rebounding as reasoning for calling them the better squad.

Texas Tech scored 17 more points off turnovers than Florida, forcing five more than the Gators, while also scoring eight more points in the paint. They secured three more offensive rebounds as well.

"I thought we could win it the whole game," Texas Tech forward JT Toppin said. "There wasn't a doubt in my mind until the clock hit zero. Obviously, was definitely some plays we could have changed, especially on free throws. But, yeah, I thought we was going to win it the whole time."

Though Texas Tech gave Florida a solid fight, there is no doubt who the better team was throughout the year.

Florida won six more games than the Raiders on the season, finishing six spots ahead of them in the final AP rankings and seven spots higher in KenPom's rankings. Their NET rating was also 8.44 points higher.

The Gators also finished the regular season 8-2 against ranked teams with five wins over top ten opponents while Texas Tech was 1-4 against such teams with their one win coming in OT against Houston, the No. 6-ranked team at the time.

Notably, Barkley spent his time in college with the Auburn Tigers, a team Florida found success against early in the year and their possible opponent next week.

Despite who he thought looked better on the night, the better team on the year came out victorious, looking ahead to a possible rematch against his alma mater. Florida will play the winner of Sunday's contest between Auburn and Michigan State on April 5 in San Antonio, Texas.