Photos From Florida's Final Four Win Over Auburn

The Florida Gators punched its ticket to the national championship with a 79-73 win over Auburn in the Final Four. Gators Illustrated photographer Kyle Lander documented the victory as Florida now advances to its first title game since 2007.

Florida Gators guard Alijah Martin had two highlight plays with dunks in transition in the team's win over Auburn in the Final Four. "We've been waiting on him all year," guard Walter Clayton Jr. joked. | Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

SAN ANTONIO-- For the fourth time in program history, the Florida Gators will play for a national championship after a 79-73 win over Auburn on Saturday in the Final Four.

Sparked by a 34-point outing from Walter Clayton Jr. and a strong defensive effort in the second half, Florida defeated the Tigers for the second time this season and will now play Houston on Monday in the national championship game.

Tip-off between the Gators and the Cougars is at 8:50 p.m. ET with television coverage on CBS.

All photos via Gators Illustrated's Kyle Lander.

Saturday, April 5, 2025: Florida 79, Auburn 73

The Florida Gators' win over Auburn in the Final Four clinched the program's first appearance in the national title game since 2007 and fourth overall in program history. "I'm incredibly proud of these guys forgetting this win. We're alive, man. We're playing for this national championship on Monday night," head coach Todd Golden said. | Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

The Florida Gators advanced to the national championship after a 34-point performance from Walter Clayton Jr. "He's poised, calm and collected, confident in himself. We have that confidence in him. We see him practice, see his work ethic. We're glad everybody else is getting to see him do it in a game," Will Richard said of Clayton Jr. | Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

HC Todd Golden

Florida Gators head coach Todd Golden is just the second coach in program history to lead the team to the national championship game alongside Billy Donovan. "I was thinking how amazing it was that he's here, a guy that is the face of Florida basketball, had such an amazing career in Gainesville, and obviously after. What he was able to do. He raised the bar pretty high at Florida. There's some pretty high expectations now because of what he was able to do in his time there," Golden said. | Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

Florida Gators head coach Todd Golden, after winning his first NCAA Tournament game in his head coaching career, has led the program to its first national championship appearance in nearly 20 years. "It's pretty incredible, man, you know? We worked pretty hard to get here. In three years, been fortunate to build a great staff that is aligned, that works really hard for each other," he said/ | Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

G Walter Clayton Jr.

Florida Gators guard Walter Clayton Jr. set a new program-high for points in a Final Four with a game-high 34 points in the win over Auburn. " He's special," Will Richard said. | Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

G Alijah Martin

Florida Gators guard Alijah Martin had two highlight plays with dunks in transition in the team's win over Auburn in the Final Four. "We've been waiting on him all year," guard Walter Clayton Jr. joked. | Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

Florida Gators guard Alijah Martin finished with 17 points in his second Final Four appearance. He became the first player in NCAA history to start in the Final Four. "From the moment he got to campus in the summer, we knew that his experience and his mentality and the way he approached workouts and practice would really help this group," head coach Todd Golden said. | Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

Florida Gators guard Alijah Martin may have had a strong 17 points, but his defensive effort across the season has stood out, and it was no different in the second half of Saturday's win over Auburn in the Final Four. "Yeah, we know what we need to do. We just had to trust each other, play harder, get the job done," Martin said. | Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

G Will Richard

Florida Gators guard Will Richard hit five free throws and recorded six rebounds in the team's win over Auburn in the Final Four. "Walt, Will and Alijah, senior leaders, guys that have been through the fire a little bit before. Great players with really, really a high level of confidence. They just kind of breathe it into the rest of the team," head coach Todd Golden said. | Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

Florida Gators guard Will Richard hit five free throws and recorded six rebounds in the team's win over Auburn in the Final Four. "Walt, Will and Alijah, senior leaders, guys that have been through the fire a little bit before. Great players with really, really a high level of confidence. They just kind of breathe it into the rest of the team," head coach Todd Golden said. | Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

Auburn HC Bruce Pearl

Auburn Tigers head coach Bruce Pearl has now lost both matchups this season against his former assistant, Florida Gators head coach Todd Golden, after Saturday's Final Four. "Credit Auburn. Obviously an incredible team, one of the best college basketball teams in the past couple decades. You all know how much I love Bruce and Steven and their program," Golden said. | Bruce Pearl

F Thomas Haugh

Florida Gators forward Thomas Haugh has turned from a largely unknown recruit to one of the nation's top players in his sophomore season. He recorded 12 points and two blocks, helping Florida rebound after a poor defensive effort in the first half. "That's not the game of basketball, that's not the style of basketball we played at the beginning, out-physical us. That gave us extra motivation. Coach Hartman got on us a lot at halftime, too. That helped a lot going into that second half," he said. | Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

G Cooper Josefsberg

Florida Gators walk-on Cooper Josefsberg celebrates with the Rowdy Reptiles after the team's win over Auburn in the Final Four. | Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

Strength and Conditioning Coordinator Victor Lopez

Florida Gators' strength and conditioning coordinator Victor Lopez celebrates as the team defeats Auburn in the Final Four. | Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

The Rowdy Reptiles

Florida Gators fans celebrate as the team punches its ticket to the national championship. | Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated