Former Bartow High star Walter Clayton Jr. leads Florida to Sweet 16

Point guard led Yellow Jackets to back-to-back state titles in 2020-21

Mar 23, 2025; Raleigh, NC, USA; Florida Gators guard Walter Clayton Jr. (1) controls the ball as Connecticut Huskies forward Liam McNeeley (30) defends during the second half in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at Lenovo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images / Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

Where Walter Clayton Jr. succeeds, the University of Florida men’s basketball team usually follows.

Clayton led Bartow High School to consecutive Class 6A state championships in 2020-21. Now, the First Team All-American point guard is continuing his clutch shooting in the NCAA Tournament, scoring 23 points, including a pair of huge 3-pointers in the final 3 minutes, to rally the top-seeded Gators past two-time defending national champion Connecticut, 77-75, in a second-round game of the West Regional.

Clayton sank a 3-pointer with 2:55 left to give UF a 62-61 lead, and another 3-pointer with 1:07 remaining for a 70-64 advantage. He finished with five 3-pointers.

“It’s just my teammates trusting me with the ball in my hand and being able to shoot that shot,” Clayton said in the post-game March Madness press conference, “so, I appreciate them for that trust, and just sticking with it.

“We knew this game wouldn’t be easy,” Clayton said. “They got championship pedigree, man. They are back-to-back champions.”

In beating UConn, which played UF tight most of the way, the Gators won their eighth straight game and advanced to next week’s Sweet 16.

“A great win for our program,” said UF coach Todd Golden in the post-game March Madness press conference. “The time is now for us to take that next step to get Florida back to where it belongs, and being in the Sweet 16 is a great step in that direction.”

In guiding UF (32-4) to its first Sweet 16 since 2017, Clayton (6-foot-3, 195 pounds) has played a big role in the Gators’ resurgence. He is averaging 17.9 points, 3.8 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game this season.

In his first season with the Gators in 2023-24, he averaged 17.6 ppg and 3.6 rpg on his way to making Second Team All-SEC.

He played his first two years of college at Iona, leading the school to regular season titles in 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 and a conference championship in 2023.

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