Florida HC Todd Golden explains how Gators pulled off 12-point comeback vs Houston: "Didn't point fingers, didn't try to make hero plays"

Todd Golden guided the Florida Gators to their first national championship since 2007 as they defeated the Houston Cougars 65-63 in the final on Monday at Alamodome in Texas.

The Gators didn't have the best of starts as they were trailing at the break. They also had a slow start to the second half, but they managed to edge past their opponents in the final stretch to earn their third title in program history.

"Our guys knew it wasn't going to be easy. They never panicked when it got tough," Golden said while speaking to the media postgame. "When we went down 12 in the second half, we didn't point fingers, we didn't start making hero plays, we didn't start gambling defensively. We got rewarded because of the toughness that we displayed."

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Will Richard, Alex Condon and Walter Clayton Jr. were the players who finished with double-digit scores in the final. Richard registered 18 points while Clayton and Condon amassed 11 and 12 points, respectively.

Although Clayton had an off day with his shooting, he made sure to make himself effective on other fronts. Clayton made a sensational block to deny Emanuel Sharp's 3-point effort for Houston late in the game. Following the block, the Gators recovered the ball and ran down the clock.

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Florida Gators held their nerves to win NCAA title despite trailing by 12 points in second half

It was a back-and-forth game between two heavyweight programs in the national championship game on Monday, and the Houston Cougars were looking like the favourites at halftime. They enjoyed a much better first half, though they only secured a three-point lead (31-28).

NCAA Basketball: Final Four National Championship-Houston vs Florida - Source: Imagn

Houston went on a scoring spree at the start of the second half with 11-2 sparked by their star player LJ Cryer. He dropped two 3-pointers within the first three minutes of the second half. Later, Florida clawed their way back in the game with a 7-0 stretch, not allowing the Cougars to run away with the game.

The Cougars did exceptionally well to keep Walter Clayton Jr quiet throughout the first half. However, once he started reading the game better, he moved the ball around brilliantly, facilitating others while also putting in a shift defensively right at the end.

Florida believed in themselves even when they were down by 12 points, and that belief was enough to help get them over the line when it mattered most.