Walter Clayton Jr.‘s 28-Point Night Leads Florida Past Pitt, 86-71

On the back of Walter Clayton Jr., Florida overcame an early nine-point deficit to cruise past Pitt and advance to the NIT Season Tip-Off Championship.

Returning to the region where he played two seasons of college basketball before his transfer to Florida ahead of the 2023-24 campaign, junior guard Walter Clayton Jr. realized an impressive scoring outburst on Wednesday to lead the Gators past the Pittsburgh Panthers, 86-71, in the NIT Season Tip-Off Semifinals. 

His six threes highlighted a 28-point outing in which he shot 65% from the field to spearhead the Gators attack on the evening. He added five rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block to turn in an all-around performance to aid Florida to a top-end Quad II victory.

Clayton was joined by forward Tyrese Samuel, who accounted for 20 points, 10 boards, three assists, three blocks and three steals in an uber-efficient performance. 

Pitt jumped out to a 19-10 lead over Florida in the first eight minutes of the contest, as the unit's leading scorer Brett Hinson made several tough shots from downtown while the Panthers' backcourt created valuable opportunities in transition.

However, unlike in years past, Florida displayed its own firepower to combat Pitt's success from the floor and beyond the arc to remain within striking distance. 

Triples from Clayton and Riley Kugel, namely, answered the Panthers' early effectiveness in scoring the basketball to keep the contest from unraveling.

When Pitt's hot start cooled, its lead disintegrated as a result. Florida tied the contest with 9:58 remaining in the first, igniting a trading of punches between the two game squads. 

As the half winded down, the Gators found several opportunities to take their first lead of the contest. After squandering several opportunities, two straight steals resulted in transition buckets by Clayton. The second field goal resulted in a two-point UF advantage with 0:39 remaining.

True freshman forward Thomas Haugh knocked down a triple at the buzzer to extend Florida's lead to five at the halftime break, 39-34.

The push and pull of the back-and-forth affair rekindled upon the team's return to the hardwood for the second half, as Pitt climbed even with Florida less than minutes into the second half.

However, a 14-3 run by UF over 5:54 beginning at the 15:46 mark blew open the contest for the Gators to firmly take control. Florida used the run to outscore Pitt 47-37 in the second period, leaning on Clayton's 15 and Samuel's 12 during the surge.

While the duo led the team's scoring effort directly, fifth-year guard Zyon Pullin provided a noticeably steady hand off the bench to kickstart the Gators' offense in the first half and maintain the unit's production in the second.

He shined as a facilitator, accounting for a team-leading eight assists to significantly contribute to the team's promising 3-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio (24 assists and eight turnovers) on the day — a step in the right direction for Golden's squad after struggling with ball security through four games.

Pullin finished plus-23 when on the floor to lead all players.

Florida, led by the trio of impact veteran transfers, cruised to a 15-point victory over Pitt as a result. It did so without starting center Micah Handlogten — who saw just 49 seconds of action before exiting with an ankle injury.

His availability moving forward is to be determined.

The Gators will strive to remain hot as they participate in the NIT Season Tip-Off Championship contest against the No. 13 Baylor Bears on Friday. Tip-off for the championship tilt is set for 5:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

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