Walter Clayton Jr.’s Special Game Lifts Florida Basketball Into Finals

Florida outlasted Auburn on the shoulders of Walter Clayton Jr., 79-73, setting up a date with Houston in the national championship game.

There may not be a great NBA comparison for Walter Clayton Jr. We’ve heard the Steph Curry comments after he dribbled the ball out of the paint, turned around, fired away, and hit near the end of Florida basketball’s Elite 8 win over Texas Tech. It was a shot few people should or will take, but Clayton did it without thought.

Heading into the Final Four, there was talk of Clayton’s current run with Florida matching Kemba Walker’s historic championship run with UConn in 2011.

But Walter Clayton Jr. doesn’t like to try to be anyone else but Walter Clayton Jr.

“I wouldn’t say limitation. I try to be my own person,” said Clayton, following a 34-point outburst in the national semifinals.

Clayton went 11-for-18 from the field, knocked down five threes, and hit all seven of his free throws, putting together an individual Final Four performance for the ages. He became the first player since Larry Bird in 1979 to follow up a 30-point game in the Elite 8 with another one in the Final Four.

“Clayton was the difference,” said Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl. “He was just flat out the difference. We couldn’t contain him down that end.”

“I guess you could say I haven’t really had time to reflect on what I’ve been doing,” said Clayton. “I’ve just been focused on us winning games, winning games with these guys.”

Technically, he’s not lying. Florida basketball has been winning games – 34 in total and 10 straight dating back to Mar. 1.

“We’re alive, man. We’re playing for this national championship on Monday night,” said head coach Todd Golden.

But this is more than just a Florida basketball team winning games at the right time. They’ve had a great team all season, and somehow, they sort of hid a great player for a good chunk of it. Cooper Flagg and Johni Broome dominated the National Player of the Year talks all season. But now, with Broome and Flagg both eliminated, and with all eyes on college basketball, there’s no hiding Walter Clayton Jr. He’s put the whole country on notice.

And for a player that has captured the attention of America during this March Madness, he doesn’t seem to bat an eye.

“I just let the game come to me,” said Clayton. “Just read and reacting to the defense. I know I got weapons around me.”

That’s your typical answer from a media-trained college basketball star. But we can’t let him off the hook. Letting the game come to him doesn’t just result in dropping 34 points in front of nearly 70,000 fans at the Alamo Dome. Just reading the defense isn’t about hitting a contested stepback corner three as if the defender wasn’t even there. Shot after shot, moment after moment, Walter Clayton Jr. delivers. It has become the norm. We expect to see the ball go in the net on otherwise impossible shots.

So what does that make Walter Clayton Jr?

“I’ll just say special, to be honest,” said guard Will Richard. “He’s special.”

“Special,” said Thomas Haugh.

Nice use of adjectives, Florida! Want to come up with anything different?

“Special,” said Alijah Martin.

Some laughter followed that response, but it’s pretty telling. Sometimes, creativity can’t sum up how great a player is. Walter Clayton Jr. is special and all tournament long he’s put together special game after special game.

“Obviously he hasn’t been perfect all year, but he’s been pretty dang good over these last couple months,” said Golden.

With one more game to go, one win away from a third national championship in Florida basketball history, Walter Clayton Jr. keeps it simple and acts as if it’s just a regular old driveway game.

His teammates all know how “special” he is, but they don’t need to say anything much more than that. It’s kind of like not telling a golfer that he’s 2-under par with three holes to go. You don’t want to break the flow. There’s no need to try and butter up Walter Clayton and make him realize just exactly what he’s accomplishing.

Clayton talked about Kemba’s run in 2011 that has become immortalized in college basketball history.

“I kind of admired that. He was able to just zone himself out, just play his game,” said Clayton.

Clayton’s not copying Walker. ‘Cardiac Kemba’ has already been taken. It’s trademarked.

Walter Clayton Jr. is trying to make a name for himself. And to be honest, he already has. But right now, on the night before the championship game, he’s just been a great story in a tournament that’s needed some extra storylines.

With a win on Monday night, Walter Clayton Jr. can etch his name in March Madness history. Now that would be special.