One Mississippian is guaranteed a ring when Florida and Houston square off in the NCAA championship on Monday night.
Alijah Martin, a Summit native, is the second-leading scorer for the Gators with 14.6 points per game. The transfer guard in his final season of eligibility is looking to not only help lead Florida to its first title since back-to-back national championships in 2006 and 2007, but also achieve a goal that has been on his mind since playing on Florida Atlantic’s Final Four team in 2023.
“This one means a lot. Because something I hadn’t done before was win a semifinal game in an NCAA Tournament,” Martin told reporters in San Antonio on Sunday. “And it was kind of a get-back for the FAU team and how we lost.”
In Florida’s 79-73 semifinal victory over SEC rival and No. 1 overall seed Auburn, the game was tied midway through the second half when Martin beat All-American forward Johni Broome to a loose ball for a momentum-turning steal and a breakaway dunk.
He later added another picturesque dunk to finish the game with 17 points.
Martin, a product of the North Pike School District, has his community behind him, too. Students across the K-12 system were encouraged to wear blue or orange on Monday to support an alumnus making a name for himself on one of the sport’s biggest stages.
“We are proud of YOU – Alijah Martin. You started as a Little Jag and our current Little Jags want to cheer you on!” reads a social media post by North Pike Elementary Library.
On Houston’s sideline, a familiar face will be spotted in Bogue Chitto native Kordelius Jefferson. While Jefferson hasn’t been a key piece of the Cougars’ run to the title game, averaging 3.8 minutes and 0.2 points per game, the redshirt freshman guard continues to fill his current role as a bench player who can be plugged in by head coach Kelvin Sampson when needed.
Jefferson moved from Mississippi to Texas in sixth grade, going on to attend Arlington’s James Martin High School. On the prep level, he was ranked as the No. 7 player in the state of Texas and a top 100 player nationally, indicating he may be in line to have a big career for a program on the precipice of becoming a premier powerhouse.
Jefferson and company will look to lead Houston to its first-ever national title, with the closest the team has ever come being back-to-back runner-up finishes in 1983 and 1984. This season is the Cougars’ fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament, including two Final Four appearances.
The national championship will tip off from inside the Alamodome at 7:50 p.m. CT, and you better believe plenty of Mississippians will be tuning in.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
