Florida’s rally shocks Houston in national championship; 2025 Masters rooting guide; UCL preview

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🏆 Good morning to all, but especially to …

THE FLORIDA GATORS

All season long, Florida hummed up and down the court, a high-octane offense nearly unstoppable in transition and ferocious on the offensive glass.

But when they needed it most, the Gators got it done with defensive tenacity, tremendous effort and just enough offense to rally past Houston, 65-63, stunningly outlasting and out-toughing a program that prides itself on stamina and toughness.

• Florida trailed by 12 with under 16 minutes left but slowly chipped away and took a 64-63 lead with 46 seconds left on a pair of Alijah Martin free throws, its first lead since the opening minutes.
• Once again, Final Four Most Outstanding Player Walter Clayton Jr. was terrific when it mattered most, scoring nine points in the final eight minutes. He had just two points prior to that.
• Clayton also had an excellent closeout on Emanuel Sharp, who was unable to get a shot off moments before time expired.
• Florida overcame deficits of at least nine points in the Elite Eight, Final Four and national championship, the only team to do that in at least the last 20 years.

Clayton’s March Madness run is an all-timer, and he overcame a tough shooting night with the closeout of closeouts on Sharp’s would-be shot attempt that was never even attempted, David Cobb writes.

• Cobb: “Clayton read the play just quickly enough, racing toward Sharp before a second screener could get there to impede Clayton’s frantic close-out.
  As Sharp began his jump, Clayton jumped with him, leaving him with no choice but to abandon the shot attempt in midair and put the ball on the ground. As the final seconds ticked away, Condon fell on the basketball and passed it to Clayton just as the buzzer sounded.”

All in all, it was a game that really showed Florida’s excellent depth and versatility.

• Will Richard had a team-high 18 points, 14 of which came in the first half to keep the Gators afloat. He came up with a crucial steal late.
• Alex Condon had some tough moments but finished with 12 points, seven rebounds and four steals, including the one to clinch it.
• Sixth man extraordinaire Thomas Haugh had just five points, but Florida outscored Houston by 13 in his 24 minutes on the court.
• Florida had zero turnovers over the final 9:30. It had 13 prior to that.

My goodness, what an effort, and what a Final Four — the best ever, in fact, Kyle writes.

Here’s more:

Oh, and one last thing. If you followed my 63 picks in 63 sentences, you picked everything from Elite Eight on correctly, finished just outside the top 1,000 in the CBS Sports Men’s Bracket Challenge … and probably won yourself some bragging rights with your family and friends. Long story short, tell your people to subscribe to this newsletter so they can get the same great content you’re seeing.

OK, that’s enough humble bragging for now.

😃 Honorable mentions

💔 And not such a good morning for …

THE HOUSTON COUGARS

You can’t get much closer to winning a national title without actually winning one than what Houston just experienced. Two nights after pulling off a remarkable semifinal comeback against Duke fueled by an undeniable spirit and remarkable late-game execution, Houston did the exact opposite Monday.

• The Cougars didn’t even get a shot off in the last minute, and their final four possessions resulted in turnovers: Joseph Tugler lost the ball after an offensive rebound, LJ Cryer and Sharp fumbled back-to-back drives, and Sharp was unable to get a shot off late, the final dagger in a long meltdown.
• “It’s incomprehensible that we couldn’t get a shot,” coach Kelvin Sampson said.
• Also incomprehensible? Florida led for just 1:04 and won. Houston led for 30:44 and lost.
• Also also incomprehensible? Houston lost for the first time all season when it held an opponent to 70 or fewer points. It had been 33-0.

Sampson, 69, was seeking to become the oldest coach to win a national championship, and the weight of coming up short again — especially in these circumstances — is absolutely crushing, Dennis Dodd writes.

• Dodd: “Maybe perspective will provide a salve for the Houston scars someday, but it won’t be today. Not with 50 Cent’s ‘Many Men’ echoing out of the Florida locker room and through the tunnels of the Alamodome. And certainly not after those turnovers.”

And with that paragraph, after nearly three decades at CBS Sports and 45 years in sports journalism, Dennis steps into retirement. For those who may have missed his column announcing his retirement last month, it’s certainly worth the read … Thanks for too many shining moments to count, sir!

👎 Not so honorable mentions

⛳ 2025 Masters rooting guide, sleepers, odds

Storms at Augusta National may have suspended practice Monday, but that hasn’t dimmed our excitement for the 2025 Masters one bit as we transition from the biggest weekend in college basketball to the biggest week in golf.

It’s certainly an extra big one for Rory McIlroy. The 35-year-old star has four major titles but still needs a green jacket to capture that elusive career grand slam. He’s been playing wonderful golf — two wins in five PGA Tour starts this season — and is rightfully only behind Scottie Scheffler for shortest odds to win the Masters.

McIlroy leads many of our big lists for this year’s edition — top storylines, most successful players yet to win at Augusta National and nine players to cheer for — and that last one is self-explanatory, Robby Kalland writes.

• Kalland: “One could probably copy and paste the same paragraph from every Masters preview … That it’s been a decade since his last major win would make it all the more incredible for him to finally join that [grand slam] group. Even more, coming into this year, it felt like golf fans were finally ready to have an honest conversation about the Rory hype train going into the Masters. Instead, all that got thrown out the window when he won at Pebble Beach and The Players. There’s no doubt about it: We’re ready to get hurt again.”

If you’re looking outside the top names, though, Robby also has sleeper picks, including …

• Kalland: “Min Woo Lee — He’s a little less of a sleeper pick after winning in Houston, but Lee has played solidly at the Masters in the past (two top 25s in three appearances) and seems to be starting to figure out the full potential of his abilities. His ball speed is eye-popping, but what gives Lee a shot in Augusta is his creativity as a player..”

Let him cook!

Here’s more:

⚽ UEFA Champions League quarterfinal previews, lineup predictions

And then there were eight. The UEFA Champions League returns today with first legs for two of the four quarterfinal matchups:

Both ties have some history behind them: Inter beat Bayern in the iconic 2010 final, and Thierry Henry (now a CBS Sports soccer analyst) scored one of the greatest goals of his legendary career for Arsenal against Real Madrid in the 2005-06 round of 16.

Who will produce the headlines this time? Our experts have made their picks and best bets, and in Bayern Munich-Inter, Pardeep Cattry likes …

• Cattry: “Prediction: Bayern Munich 0, Inter 1 – Both teams have their strengths but it is hard to bet against Inter’s consistency, especially for an up-and-down Bayern side that is depleted after injuries to Alphonso Davies and Dayot Upemacano. Harry Kane will do what he can to give Bayern an edge but up against an Inter team that has conceded just two goals in 10 Champions League games, this task might be easier said than done”

Arsenal-Real Madrid is an absolute firecracker of a match, and while the Gunners’ set pieces always pose a threat, James Benge says it’ll be the defense that stands out in his bold predictions. On offense, it’ll be up to Bukayo Saka and coach Mikel Arteta.

⚾ Vladimir Guerrero Jr. extension: winners, losers, questions

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. wanted half-a-billion dollars, and he got half-a-billion dollars. His 14-year, $500 million extension is the third-largest deal in MLB history and the largest extension ever.

There are plenty of reasons Guerrero Jr. got his money, as R.J. Anderson runs through, and after missing out on so many premier free agents, Toronto desperately needed to lock in a franchise cornerstone long-term. But Toronto also needs that to start translating into wins. That’s why “Can they compete?” leads off R.J.’s four big questions.

• Anderson: “It’s too early to know if the Blue Jays have the horses to make it to October, but the early returns have been a mixed bag. … On the one hand, that means the Blue Jays are a few upgrades and a couple of happy breaks away from making good on their postseason intentions. On the other, it means that the Blue Jays could author the kind of inconsistent, at times frustrating summer that their recent iterations became known for. We suppose that’s still a kinder fate than the 74-88 campaign they put forth last season.”

Guerrero Jr. is obviously a big winner from this historic deal, but so is Kyle Tucker, the next outfielder in line for huge money. Matt Snyder says the Cubs should act quickly.

As for a loser, how about free agency as a whole? The next class certainly doesn’t feel like it has the shine it did before this deal. 

📺 What we’re watching Tuesday

⚽ Bayern Munich vs. Inter, 3 p.m. on Paramount+
⚽ Arsenal vs. Real Madrid, 3 p.m. on Paramount+
🏒 Maple Leafs at Panthers, 7 p.m. on ESPN
⚾ Phillies at Braves, 7:15 p.m. on TBS
🏀 Celtics at Knicks, 7:30 p.m. on TNT/truTV
🏒 Golden Knights at Avalanche, 9:30 p.m. on ESPN
🏀 Warriors at Suns, 10 p.m. on TNT/truTV
⚽ USWNT vs. Brazil, 10:30 p.m. on TBS