The 2025 NCAA Tournament is officially in the books. No. 1 seed Florida defeated No. 1 seed Houston 65-63 in a dramatic comeback victory to claim the program’s first national title since 2007. The Gators trailed by as many as 12 points in the second half before flipping the switch behind a big performance from All-American guard Walter Clayton Jr.
It is time to look back on some of the best (and worst) moments from the Big Dance. No. 1 seed Duke looked well on its way to playing for the championship before squandering away a 14-point lead with just over eight minutes remaining in regulation against Houston. That loss ended Duke’s season and likely Cooper Flagg’s tenure at the school, too.
Flagg, the projected No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, is expected to be one-and-done and will exit college basketball after one of the best freshmen seasons ever. Flagg missed a turnaround jumper in the final 20 seconds that would’ve served as the go-ahead bucket against Houston.
One of the biggest winners of the NCAA Tournament was Clayton Jr., who raised his draft stock with standout performances en route to a national title. He scored 34 points in a win over Auburn in the national semifinals and scored all 11 of his points in the national championship after halftime. Clayton could be a first-round pick when it’s all said and done.
With the 2024-25 college basketball season over, here are the biggest winners and losers from the NCAA Tournament this year.
Winner: Florida caps tournament with another comeback win
In the national title game against Houston, Florida led for just 1:04. But it didn’t matter.
The Gators took their first lead since the early minutes of the first half with 46 seconds remaining after Alijah Martin knocked down two free throws. Backup guard Denzel Aberdeen split a pair 30 seconds later to extend the lead to two. Florida then got a defensive stop to secure the national title.
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