Florida star Walter Clayton Jr.'s blunt take on Gators' No. 1 seed case
03/05/2025 11:47 PM
One of the least talked-about great teams in college basketball this season has been Florida. Todd Golden and the Gators have quietly hummed through the loaded SEC this season, putting together one of the best campaigns of anybody in the nation.
After Wednesday night, Florida may have the best collection of wins in the whole country. The fifth-ranked Gators went on the road to Tuscaloosa and soundly knocked off No. 7 Alabama 99-94 to cement its case as a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
After the game, star guard Walter Clayton Jr. didn’t hold back on whether the Gators deserve that final spot on the one-line, via Graham Hall of 247 Sports.
“We think we’ve done enough, you know, we’ve been winning games, showing who we are,” Clayton said, per Hall. “But if it happens, it happens. If it don’t, it don’t. We’re going to go into the Tournament with the same mentality, and that’s beat whoever in front of us.”
Florida has one of the best resumes in the nation and a deep run in the SEC Tournament may be enough to get it a top seed in the Big Dance. Golden also believes that Florida should be in that spot, and he understands the importance of getting this win over another team fighting for that spot.
“This is a big win, obviously both clubs competing for the last 1-seed in the NCAA Tournament, and this was a big one for us,” Golden said, per Hall.
Florida has inside track to fourth No. 1 seed after win over Alabama
The competition for the final No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament is a heated one, but Florida is in pole position to grab that spot after this big win against Alabama.
Houston, Duke and Auburn are essentially locked into the top three spots, but Florida, Alabama, Tennessee and even Michigan State all have strong cases to make for the final spot out west. However, Florida now has arguably the best collection of great wins in the country with victories over Auburn and Alabama on the road.
On top of that, Todd Golden and company have beaten Mississippi State, Tennessee, Vanderbilt and plenty of others in SEC play.
Even though Florida — or whoever earns that No. 4 overall spot — will likely have to play the West Regional and be far away from home, the advantage of being a top seed is a big one. Dodging the deep crop of very good teams on the No. 2 and 3 lines will be critical and should result in a much better draw for the Gators if they do get it.
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