The first half of men's March Madness is in the books, and with 20 minutes expired, the Florida Gators find themselves down three against the Houston Cougars, 31-28, in the NCAA Tournament Finals.
It was the rockfight everyone expected in the opening session, but the mutual futility both teams displayed from beyond the arc was not something most had foreseen. Florida looked sloppy on offense while Houston displayed its trademark defense to take a modest lead into the locker room.
Still, the game is close and either team can take home the trophy with a strong second half. It is do-or-die time.
Below is a look at some of the key stats from the first half of the NCAA Tournament Finals, along with brief explanations for what went right and wrong, plus a prognosis for the Orange and Blue in the second half.
Key Stats: Florida Gators
- FG%: 37.9
- 3pt%: 28.6
- Rebounds: 22
- Assists: 8
- Turnovers: 9
- Transition Points: 0
- Points in Paint: 12
- Second-Chance Points: 7
Key Stats: Houston Cougars
- FG%: 37.8
- 3pt%: 14.3
- Rebounds: 19
- Assists: 3
- Turnovers: 2
- Transition Points: 4
- Points in Paint: 14
- Second-Chance Points: 0
What went right for Florida?
The Gators came out strong and found a bunch of easy baskets in the middle of the paint for easy scores, but once things slowed down it took a bit for the team to figure things out. Will Richard ostensibly carried the team in the first half, finishing with 14 points on 5-for-8 shooting overall and 4-for-6 from downtown while chipping in five rebounds and an assist.
Florida's edge in the rebounding department is also a plus and the second-chance scoring shows that their front court has been doing its job on the glass. The eight assists are also a good sign that the team is still sharing the ball well.
What went wrong for Florida?
Turnovers were Florida's Achilles heel in the first half, and compared to Houston's two, that put the Gators in a bit of a hole and allowed Hoston to outshoot the Gators, with 37 attempts against 29. Walter Clayton Jr. was responsible for a pair, while Alex Condon coughed up three.
The team also started 0-for-6 from 3 before Will Richard caught fire from downtown; fortunately, Houston also had a 0-for-8 start from beyond the arc but also began to find its rhythm. But the biggest story is the goose egg put up by Clayton over the first 20 minutes which created a massive vacuum on the scoreboard but he did hand out five dimes.
Second-half prognosis
There is no way Clayton will continue to be held scoreless, so the key in the second half for Florida is to get their All-American rolling, reduce the turnovers and keep up the strong work in the frontcourt. However, this is the best defense in the country, so there is no guarantee that the Gators' point guard will find his seam.
If Clayton cannot get it going, it falls on the shoulders of Richard, Alijah Martin and Condon to carry the team to the promised land. Can they pull it off? We will find out soon enough.
