SAN FRANCISCO — With Florida on the brink of elimination from the NCAA men’s basketball tournament, All-American guard Walter Clayton Jr. answered with one of the great clutch performances in school history Saturday to guide the Gators to the Final Four with an 84-79 win against third-seeded Texas Tech.

Clayton Jr. scored 13 of his game-high 30 points over the game’s final 5:24, helping the Gators erase a 10-point deficit at the Chase Center, home of the Golden State Warriors. He was later named the West Region’s Most Outstanding Player.

With 3:14 left in the game, it looked like Florida would be the first No. 1 seed to be eliminated from the tournament. Texas Tech star JT Toppin scored inside to put the Red Raiders up 9 and the Gators had been unable to score back-to-back buckets the entire second half.

But Thomas Haugh answered with back-to-back 3s for the Gators to cut the deficit to 75-72 with 2:27 left, before Clayton Jr. took the baton. He also hit back-to-back 3s to give Florida its first lead since early in the half and iced the game in its closing moments with a pair of free throws.

The Gators (34-4) have won 10 straight games and will play the winner of Sunday’s game between Auburn and Michigan State on Saturday in San Antonio. Florida won its only regular-season matchup with SEC rival Auburn, 90-81, on Feb. 8.

San Francisco has become an unlikely city of importance for the Gators. Three years ago, the school plucked coach Todd Golden from the University of San Francisco and returned this week to punch its ticket to the Final Four.

The last time the Gators reached the Final Four was in 2014, the second-to-last season under longtime coach Billy Donovan.

For Texas Tech (28-9), the game was somewhat of a role reversal compared to the Sweet 16. In that win against Arkansas, the Red Raiders erased a 16-point second-half deficit to advance, thanks to clutch shooting down the stretch. This time, despite big nights from Darrion Williams (23 points) and Toppin (20 points), it wasn’t meant to be.

Haugh’s two key late 3s were part of his best overall performance as a Gator. The sophomore finished with 20 points off the bench and was a huge spark in the first half.