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SAN ANTONIO — Walter Clayton Jr.’s introduction to March Madness came 14 years ago.
It was the time that Kemba Walker put Connecticut on his back, leading the Huskies to a Big East Tournament crown and an unexpected NCAA Tournament title.
“Kemba on one of the biggest stages was calm, cool and collected,” Clayton said. “Just watching that, I kind of admired that. He was able to just zone himself out, just play his game.”
That’s how Clayton’s teammates have described him. He’s now one win away from pulling off a nearly exact imitation of Cardiac Kemba.
The former Iona University star’s huge tournament now includes a memorable Final Four performance, after he lifted No. 1 seed Florida past fellow No. 1 Auburn 79-73 at the Alamodome on Saturday night.
The Gators will face Houston, which beat Duke, in Monday’s championship game
This wasn’t as dramatic as his second-half outbursts in come-from-behind wins over No. 9 Connecticut in the second round and No. 3 Texas Tech in the Elite Eight.
But it was just as impressive, Clayton going off for 34 points and five 3-pointers on 11-for-18 shooting — the first 30-point effort in the Final Four since Carmelo Anthony in 2003, and just the 15th ever.
“I feel like I’m ready for Monday,” Clayton said after becoming the first player with consecutive 30-point games in the Elite Eight or later since Larry Bird in 1979. “I’m ready to get to Monday, hopefully get the job done.”
Again, he was at his best in crunch time.
Clayton scored 10 points in the final 4:29, and 20 in the second half. His 3-point play with 1:33 to go pushed Florida’s lead to six, after he had scored on a driving layup on the previous possession, going past Auburn forward Dylan Cardwell like he wasn’t there.
Clayton’s emergence is straight out of a Hollywood script.
An under-recruited kid who only had mid- and low-major scholarship offers coming out of high school, Clayton caught the attention of coach Rick Pitino, then at Iona, and developed into a star under his tutelage.
Clayton then went back home after his sophomore year and flirted with going pro last spring, only to return to lead Florida to a spot in the national championship game for the first time since 2007.
The coach of that team, Billy Donovan, was in attendance Saturday night. Earlier in the day, the Bulls head coach was elected to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.
“He raised the bar pretty high at Florida,” said coach Todd Golden, whose team improved to 35-4. “There’s some pretty high expectations now because of what he was able to do in his time there.”
Alijah Martin added 17 points for Florida and Thomas Haugh had 12.
Chad Baker-Mazara scored 18 points for Auburn (32-6) and Johni Broome had 15.
The Gators, trailing by nine early in the second half, turned the game with their defense.
They forced 12 Auburn turnovers and limited them to 33.3 percent shooting after halftime.
During the intermission, Haugh said Clayton delivered a pep talk to the Florida frontcourt, which struggled in the early going.
Clayton’s message was simple: Forget about the stakes. Play your game.
“I just told them I love them and I’m with them regardless,” Clayton said.
The Gators forwards responded, limiting Broome, the SEC Player of the Year, to just three points after halftime and owning the interior.
Clayton and Martin kept Florida close in the first half, combining for 24 points on 8-for-15 shooting, and it was Clayton and Martin again early in the second half, the two producing eight points in an 11-0 burst that turned a nine-point deficit into a two-point Florida lead.
From there, Clayton was in control, making the same big shots he has hit throughout this tournament.
“Clayton was the difference,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. “He was just flat out the difference. We couldn’t contain him down at that end.”
Clayton didn’t show much emotion, even after Florida had advanced to its first title game since 2007.
That’s just his way. He promised he would if the Gators were the last team standing Monday night.
“You see the biggest smile on my face for sure,” he said.
