Florida roared back from a 12-point deficit to stun Houston and claim the program's first national championship since 2007 on Monday night, 65-63. The Gators trailed 42-30 early in the second half before finding the same late surge that carried them past Auburn in the Final Four on Saturday.

Madness tournament came to an end Monday night as the Florida Gators took home the NCAA men's basketball championship.

But Florida would not be denied. The Gators looked cooked when Houston opened up a 42-30 second-half lead. But Florida persevered and rallied for a 65-63 win to secure the program's third national championship. The victory denied Houston and head coach Kelvin Sampson each their first.

In the end, college basketball always delivers. Surely this past weekend was proof, with its incessant nail-biting Final Four, starting with Florida’s 79-73 upset of overall No. 1 seed Auburn, then Houston’s furious rally to shock Duke 70-67,

The Florida Gators earned all 61 first-place votes in the final AP Top 25 Poll of the season after winning the NCAA Tournament.

Florida had little to celebrate and appeared headed for disappointment after a memorable road to the Final Four. Yet, somehow the Gators found their stride in the nick of

Florida's comeback victory over Houston in Monday night's NCAA title game was the most-watched men's championship game in six years with 18.1 million viewers.

Monday's national title bout between Florida and Houston drew 18.1 million viewers, making it the most-watched title game since 2019. The game peaked at 21.1 million viewers and was up 22 percent from last year.

It was fitting that Florida arrived nearly two hours late to its on-campus celebration Tuesday. After all, it was exactly how the Gators played while winning the NCAA Tournament. Coaches and players returned to Gainesville roughly 16 hours after rallying to beat Houston 65-63 in San Antonio to secure the program’s third national title.