2024–25 Florida Gators men's basketball team facts for kids
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!
Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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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 |
Contents
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 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Roster |
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 |
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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 |
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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 |
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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 |
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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 |
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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 |
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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 |
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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 |
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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 |
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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 |
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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 |
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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 |
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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 |
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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 |
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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 |
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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 |
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*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:
Week | |||||||||||||||||||||
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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) |