Walter Clayton Jr.'s Kemba Walker-like performances giving Florida a shot to beat Auburn

In an SEC that was filled with stars all over, Walter Clayton Jr. was one of the best. The senior guard led the team with 18.1 ppg and 4.2 apg, earning both All-SEC and All-American honors, finishing only runner-up to Johni Broome for the top individual award in the conference.

However, the NCAA Tournament has been where Clayton has elevated his game even more. In the four wins to get to the Final Four, Clayton has averaged 23.5 ppg, including 30 points in the comeback win over Texas Tech in the Elite 8 game. But he was fantastic in the team’s wins over UConn and Maryland as well, as both were tight before the senior’s shot-making ability took over.

Clayton got off to a hot start individually in the Final Four matchup against fellow No. 1 seed Auburn. However, it wasn’t enough for Florida midway through, down eight at halftime. But as with other comeback efforts by Florida, they made a quick 11-3 run to tie the game up with 16 minutes left in the game.

Clayton was right in the middle of that, making several key shots to get them not only back in the game but eventually the lead with under 10 minutes to go. As of writing before the 8-minute media timeout, he has a game-high 24 points while making four three-pointers.

We’ve seen plenty of great players have big games in the NCAA Tournament but few have been as great as Clayton for several games. One player that comes to mind is Kemba Walker, who led the 8-seed UConn Huskies to an NCAA Tournament championship over a decade ago, scoring 16 points in the title game win over Butler.

Clayton has a ways to go still, including beating Auburn. But so far, it’s hard to find a better MVP candidate than him in this event.