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Will Richard catches fire in first half vs. Houston, rescues Florida
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Will Richard rescued Florida in the first half of Monday night’s national championship game against Houston.
Walter Clayton Jr., on the heels of back-to-back 30-point performances, was held scoreless in the first 20 minutes. He missed all 4 of his shots (all 3s). Thomas Haugh was 1-for-3 for 2 points. Alijah Martin was 1-for-5 for 2 points. Florida had nearly as many turnovers (9) as made shots (11) in the first half.
And yet the Gators trailed Houston by just 3 points at the break, 31-28.
That was almost entirely due to Richard’s heroics.
The senior guard scored 14 points — half of Florida’s team total — on 5-of-8 shooting while drilling 4 triples. He also had 5 boards and a steal in 18 first-half minutes. Richard had the hot hand from beyond the arc, and as the half wore on, he started seeking out his shot to keep Florida from falling into too deep a hole.
Richard led all scorers at the break and was the only player in double-digits.
Both Florida and Houston shot 38% from the field in the first half. Richard was the only Gator who hit a 3. His teammates combined to shoot 0-for-8 from beyond the arc. Houston was just as poor, shooting 2-for-14 as a team from 3-point range.
Richard ended a 6-0 Houston run with a triple with 9:32 to play in the half. That was his first bucket of the game, and he built off of that make. He was responsible for 14 of Florida’s final 18 points in the first half.
You’ll find a sampling of the reaction to Richard’s performance below.
Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.
