Walter Clayton Jr. Named Wooden Award Finalist

The senior guard continues to rack up accolades after leading the Florida Gators to the Final Four.

Mar 27, 2025; San Francisco, CA, USA; Florida Gators guard Walter Clayton Jr. (1) drives to the hoop past Maryland Terrapins guard JaKobi Gillespie (0) during the first half during a West Regional semifinal of the 2025 NCAA tournament at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Eakin Howard-Imagn Images | Eakin Howard-Imagn Images

GAINESVILLE, Fla.-- Following his 30-point performance in the Elite 8 against Texas Tech, Florida’s Walter Clayton Jr. was named Tuesday night as one of the final five names on the Wooden Award watch list and to the All-America team. 

“There's not another player in America you would rather have right now than Walter Clayton with the ball in his hands in a big-time moment,” Gators head coach Todd Golden said following the win over Texas Tech. 

Clayton Jr. is averaging a career-best 18.1 points per game as well as 4.1 assists and 3.6 rebounds in 38 games played this season. 

With these averages and his impact on winning during the regular season, he became the first ever Gator to be named a first team All-American. Additionally, he joined Scottie Wilbekin, Al Horford, Joakim Noah, Udonis Haslem and Neal Walk as Gators to have been selected as an All-American.

It’s been a fantastic postseason stretch for the senior, starting off with the SEC Tournament. Clayton Jr. was named MVP of the SEC Tournament following three consecutive wins to claim the tournament title for the Gators. In the three games played in the conference tournament, he averaged 20.7 points, 4.7 assists, 3.7 rebounds and 2.0 steals on 47.6/50/90 splits.

He carried his scorching performances in the conference tourney into the NCAA Tournament as well, scoring at least 20 points in three of the four games and dropping 30 in the most recent win over Texas Tech in the Elite 8. 

“Just an amazing feeling,” Clayton Jr. answered when asked about how it feels to make it to a Final Four. “...we've just got a group of guys that love each other. Just doing this together, seeing each other's success, it means a lot.”

Clayton Jr. will next take the court on Saturday, battling with Auburn in the Final Four. This game is scheduled for a 6:09 p.m. ET tip and will be televised on CBS. 

John R. Wooden Award Top 5:

• Johni Broome - Auburn
• Walter Clayton Jr. - Florida
• Cooper Flagg - Duke
• Mark Sears - Alabama
• Braden Smith - Purdue

John R. Wooden Award Men’s All America Team

• Johni Broome - Auburn
• LJ Cryer - Houston
• Walter Clayton Jr. - Florida
• Cooper Flagg - Duke
• Kam Jones - Marquette
• Ryan Kalkbrenner - Creighton
• Chaz Lanier - Tennessee
• Mark Sears - Alabama
• Braden Smith - Purdue
• John Tonje - Wisconsin