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2024–25 Florida Gators men's basketball team facts for kids

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The 2024–25 Florida Gators men's basketball team had an amazing season! They played for the University of Florida and were part of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). Their home games were held at the O'Connell Center in Gainesville, Florida. This was the third year for their head coach, Todd Golden.

This season was the most successful for the Gators in 11 years. Key senior players like Walter Clayton Jr., Will Richard, and Alijah Martin led the team. They finished the regular season with a fantastic 27 wins and only 4 losses. This put them in second place in the tough SEC conference.

The Gators started strong, winning all 13 of their non-conference games. They even reached No. 6 in the AP Poll, their highest ranking in seven years. After a couple of early losses in the SEC, Florida got back on track. They won 9 of their last 10 regular season games. This included big wins on the road against No. 1 Auburn and No. 7 Alabama. It was the first time in team history they beat a No. 1 team on the road!

As the No. 2 seed in the SEC tournament, they kept winning. They beat Ole Miss and Alabama. In the SEC Championship game, they defeated Tennessee. This was their first SEC championship since 2014.

Winning the SEC tournament gave them an automatic spot in the 2025 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. They were the No. 1 seed in the West region. The Gators defeated Norfolk State (95–69), and then the two-time defending champions, UConn (77–75). They also beat Maryland (87–71) to reach the Elite Eight. There, they won against Texas Tech (84–79). This sent them to their first Final Four since 2014.

In the Final Four, they faced their SEC rival, Auburn, and won 79–73. This meant they were going to the championship game for the first time since 2007! In the final game, they beat Houston 65–63. This victory earned them their third national title overall, and their first since 2007. What a season!


2024–25 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 4 Auburn 15 – 3   .833 32 – 6   .842
No. 1 Florida † 14 – 4   .778 36 – 4   .900
No. 6 Alabama 13 – 5   .722 28 – 9   .757
No. 5 Tennessee 12 – 6   .667 30 – 8   .789
No. 19 Texas A&M 11 – 7   .611 23 – 11   .676
No. 12 Kentucky 10 – 8   .556 24 – 12   .667
Missouri 10 – 8   .556 22 – 12   .647
No. 18 Ole Miss 10 – 8   .556 24 – 12   .667
No. 20 Arkansas 8 – 10   .444 22 – 14   .611
Mississippi State 8 – 10   .444 21 – 13   .618
Georgia 8 – 10   .444 20 – 13   .606
Vanderbilt 8 – 10   .444 20 – 13   .606
Texas 6 – 12   .333 19 – 16   .543
Oklahoma 6 – 12   .333 20 – 14   .588
LSU 3 – 15   .167 14 – 18   .438
South Carolina 2 – 16   .111 12 – 20   .375
† 2025 SEC tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

Previous Season Highlights

The Gators had a good season in 2023–24. They finished with 24 wins and 12 losses. In the SEC, they won 11 games and lost 7, placing sixth.

In the SEC tournament, they made it to the championship game. They beat Georgia, Alabama, and Texas A&M. However, they lost to Auburn in the final.

The Gators also got to play in the 2024 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. They were a No. 7 seed. Unfortunately, they lost a very close game to Colorado in the first round, 102–100.

Meet the Team: The 2024–25 Roster

Here are the players who made up the Florida Gators men's basketball team for the 2024–25 season:

2024–25 Florida Gators men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 1 Clayton Jr., WalterWalter Clayton Jr. 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) GS Bartow HS
Iona		 Lake Wales, FL
G 2 Pazmino, KevinKevin Pazmino 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) So Cypress Bay HS
Santa Fe College		 Weston, FL
C 3 Handlogten, MicahMicah Handlogten 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Jr SouthLake Christian Academy
Marshall		 Lake Norman, NC
F 4 Alexis, SamSam Alexis 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Jr Apokpa HS
Chattanooga		 Apopka, FL
G 5 Richard, WillWill Richard 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 206 lb (93 kg) Sr Woodward Academy
Belmont		 Fairburn, GA
G 7 Klavžar, UrbanUrban Klavžar 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 195 lb (88 kg) So Real Madrid Domžale, Slovenia
C 9 Chinyelu, RuebenRueben Chinyelu 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 255 lb (116 kg) So Stade Malien
Washington State		 Enugwu-Agidi, Nigeria
F 10 Haugh, ThomasThomas Haugh 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 215 lb (98 kg) So Perkiomen School New Oxford, PA
G 11 Aberdeen, DenzelDenzel Aberdeen 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Jr Dr. Phillips HS Orlando, FL
C 12 Mikić, ViktorViktor Mikić 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Fr Hamilton Heights (TN) Belgrade, Serbia
G 15 Martin, AlijahAlijah Martin 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 210 lb (95 kg) GS North Pike HS
Florida Atlantic		 Summit, MS
G 20 Brown, IsaiahIsaiah Brown 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Fr Orlando Christian Prep Orlando, FL
F/C 21 Condon, AlexAlex Condon 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 230 lb (104 kg) So NBA Global Academy Perth, Australia
G 22 Andersen, BennettBennett Andersen (W) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) GS Jesuit HS Tampa, FL
G 30 Kublickas, KajusKajus Kublickas 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) So Zalgiris II Kaunas, Lithuania
C 32 Rioux, OlivierOlivier Rioux Current redshirt 7 ft 9 in (2.36 m) 305 lb (138 kg) Fr IMG Academy Terrebonne, QC
G 33 Josefsberg, CooperCooper Josefsberg (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) So Riviera Prep Miami, FL
Head coach
  • Todd Golden (Saint Mary's*)
Assistant coach(es)
  • Carlin Hartman (Tulane)
  • Kevin Hovde (Richmond)
  • Korey McCray (Mercer)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Current redshirt

Roster
Last update: November 15, 2024

Game Schedule and Results

The Gators played many exciting games during their championship season. Here's a look at some of their key matchups and how they performed:

Date
time, TV		 Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 4, 2024*
8:30 p.m., SECN		 No. 21 vs. South Florida
Jacksonville Sports Foundation Invitational		 W 98–83  1–0
  29 – Clayton Jr.   6 – Tied   3 – Martin  VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena (5,764)
Jacksonville, FL
November 7, 2024*
8:00 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+		 No. 21 Jacksonville W 81–60  2–0
  23 – Condon   7 – Alexis   7 – Clayton Jr.  O'Connell Center (8,381)
Gainesville, FL
November 15, 2024*
6:00 p.m., ACCN		 No. 20 at Florida State
Rivalry		 W 87–74  4–0
  25 – Clayton Jr.   12 – Condon   3 – Tied  Donald L. Tucker Civic Center (9,797)
Tallahassee, FL
November 29, 2024*
3:30 p.m., ESPN		 No. 18 vs. Wichita State
ESPN Events Invitational Final		 W 88–51  8–0
  19 – Clayton Jr.   11 – Chinyelu   5 – Richard  State Farm Field House (3,875)
Bay Lake, FL
December 17, 2024*
7:00 p.m., ESPN		 No. 7 vs. North Carolina
Jumpman Invitational		 W 90–84  11–0
  22 – Richard   10 – Condon   5 – Condon  Spectrum Center (16,058)
Charlotte, NC
SEC regular season
January 4, 2025
11:00 a.m., ESPN		 No. 6 at No. 10 Kentucky
Rivalry		 L 100–106  13–1
(0–1)		  33 – Clayton Jr.   10 – Condon   5 – Clayton Jr.  Rupp Arena (21,093)
Lexington, KY
January 7, 2025
7:00 p.m., ESPN2		 No. 8 No. 1 Tennessee W 73–43  14–1
(1–1)		  18 – Martin   15 – Chinyelu   5 – Clayton Jr.  O'Connell Center (11,011)
Gainesville, FL
February 8, 2025
4:00 p.m., ESPN2		 No. 6 at No. 1 Auburn W 90–81  20–3
(7–3)		  19 – Clayton Jr.   10 – Condon   9 – Clayton Jr.  Neville Arena (9,121)
Auburn, AL
March 5, 2025
7:00 p.m., ESPN2		 No. 5 at No. 7 Alabama W 99–94  26–4
(13–4)		  27 – Condon   11 – Chinyelu   8 – Clayton Jr.  Coleman Coliseum (13,474)
Tuscaloosa, AL
SEC tournament
March 14, 2025
7:00 p.m., SECN		 (2) No. 4 vs. (7) No. 21 Missouri
Quarterfinals		 W 95–81  28–4
  18 – Clayton Jr.   8 – Condon   6 – Clayton Jr.  Bridgestone Arena (18,608)
Nashville, TN
March 16, 2025
1:00 p.m., ESPN		 (2) No. 4 vs. (4) No. 8 Tennessee
Championship		 W 86–77  30–4
  22 – Clayton Jr.   9 – Condon   3 – Richard  Bridgestone Arena (19,151)
Nashville, TN
NCAA tournament
March 21, 2025
6:50 p.m., TNT		 (1 W) No. 3 vs. (16 W) Norfolk State
First Round		 W 95–69  31–4
  23 – Clayton Jr.   8 – Tied   5 – Richard  Lenovo Center (19,178)
Raleigh, NC
March 23, 2025
12:10 p.m., CBS		 (1 W) No. 3 vs. (8 W) UConn
Second Round		 W 77–75  32–4
  23 – Clayton Jr.   7 – Haugh   4 – Condon  Lenovo Center (19,244)
Raleigh, NC
March 29, 2025
6:09 p.m., TBS/TruTV		 (1 W) No. 3 vs. (3 W) No. 9 Texas Tech
Elite Eight		 W 84–79  34–4
  30 – Clayton Jr.   11 – Haugh   4 – Clayton Jr.  Chase Center (16,778)
San Francisco, CA
April 7, 2025
8:50 p.m., CBS		 (1 W) No. 3 vs. (1 MW) No. 2 Houston
National Championship, College GameDay		 W 65–63  36–4
  18 – Richard   8 – Richard   7 – Clayton Jr.  Alamodome (66,602)
San Antonio, TX
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
W=West. S=South. MW=Midwest.
All times are in Eastern Time.

Team Rankings Throughout the Season

The Florida Gators were highly ranked for most of the season. Here's how they moved up and down in the national polls:

See also: 2024–25 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
т = Tied with team above or below ( ) = First-place votes
Week
Poll Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 Final
AP 21 20 21 18 13 9 7 6 6 8 5 (1) 5 5 6 3т (3) 2 (1) 3 5 4 3 (2) 1 (61)
Coaches 21 19 19 16 13 7 6 5 5 8 4 6 6 6 3 2 3 5 4 (1) 3 (3) 1 (31)
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