SAN ANTONIO – A day later, the Alamodome still shook thanks to Alijah Martin.
No, not literally, but in the eyes of Florida basketball fans, it roared all night.
The Gators guard powered home a ferocious slam in the second half of UF’s 79-73 Final Four win over Auburn to advance to the NCAA Final Monday night vs. Houston.
Advertisement
For Martin, that slam and the emphatic nature behind it served as a metaphor of sorts. Two years ago, he suffered one of the more recent heartbreaking Final Four losses – a buzzer beater to San Diego State while at FAU.
Alijah Martin’s new memory
Martin called it “super satisfying” to create a new moment on the sport’s biggest stage.
“The way we lost, I hate being remembered by that,” he said. “Creates new members and have something else to look forward to when you when you think about the Final Four.”
Motivation isn’t hard to come by in the Final Four, but freshman Isaiah Brown said Martin’s loss added some extra for the team.
Advertisement
“We all as a team, came together and we all knew that as a team, we want this for us, but especially for Martin, knowing that he lost so tragically, last two years ago with FAU,” Brown said.
Coach Todd Golden spoke in a similar manner. He said Martin has provided a level of toughness and maturity that younger players are almost forced to emulate.
“Just works with great urgency on a daily basis. His leadership, along with Walt, Will has carried us all year, and raised the bar in terms of what the expectation is for the younger guys, and they have no choice but to meet it,” Golden said.
That mentality shined through in the first half Saturday. While much of the praise went to Walter Clayton Jr., Martin too provided 10 points to help counter Auburn’s punches.
LJ Cryer offers similar experience
Sunday, much of the attention shifted to a Cougar who offers similar experience to Martin:
Advertisement
LJ Cryer.
Like Martin, Cryer advanced to a Final Four before this season. That came in the redshirt senior’s first year of college. At Baylor, Cryer’s Bears won the National Championship over Gonzaga.
Golden likened the two Sunday.
Houston guard L.J. Cryer chases after the ball against Duke during the national semifinals of the 2025 NCAA men’s tournament at the Alamodome.
“I was watching Scott Drew talk about L.J. on GameDay yesterday,” Golden said. “He had great things to say about him in that he wished he was still in a Baylor jersey. That’s a pretty big compliment to receive from a coach.”
Cryer’s role on the BU team was different. A New Orleans native and third-team All-American, Cryer played just 20 games after Baylor began recruiting him in eighth grade. Still, he gained valuable experience playing for a championship coach like Drew for three years until he transferred to Houston, especially emotionally.
Advertisement
“I cried in his office when things were tough. I definitely got a lot of respect for him and a lot of love for him,” Cryer said. “Sometimes opening up to people is hard, and I feel like I got to a point where I was able to do that with him.”
Martin offered similar emotional praise for his FAU coach and current Michigan coach Dusty May, saying the former Florida assistant ensured him he made the right decision to focus on basketball over football.
“I just stuck with the process and trusted the coaches,” Martin said. “The player development there is just unmatched. Coach May did a really good job just teaching me how to play basketball, did an unbelievable job coaching me.”
Regardless of Cryer’s experience, he can flat out play. He averages a team-high 15.6 points per game, and Houston coach Kelvin Sampson admitted Cryer kept the Cougars in their Final Four game vs. Duke.
Advertisement
“He’s an incredible offensive player, and we have to do a good job on him early and often to give ourselves a chance tomorrow night,” Golden said. “His experience I’m sure is helping them along their journey, as well.”
Tipoff between the Gators and Cougars is set for 8:50 p.m. ET.
Noah Ram covers Gainesville-area high school sports and University of Florida athletics for The Gainesville Sun, GatorSports.com and the USA TODAY Network. Contact him by email at Nram@gannett.com and follow him @Noah_ram1 on X/Twitter.
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Florida basketball’s Alijah Martin, Houston’s LJ Cryer prepare for NCAA Final
