The UCF Knights Mens Basketball traveled to Gainesville, FL and faced the University of Florida Gators at the Exactech Arena tonight in the first round of the 2023 NIT Tournament.  The Knights were previously eliminated by Memphis in the AAC Tournament while the Gators fell short to Mississippi State.

Florida came out with the hot hand with M Jones hitting an early 3 pointer to spark a 5-0 run before CJ Kelly made a layup to get the Knights on the scoreboard.  Riley Kugel responded for the Gators with a step back 3 pointer and drew a foul in the process.  Kugel hit his free throw to complete the 4 point play and push the lead to 9-2.  

That’s when UCF’s freshmen star, Taylor Hendricks, ignited a 24-5 run spanning 11 minutes.  During the run, Hendricks scored 11 of his 17 points and grabbed 2 rebounds to help give the Knights a 26-14 lead with just under 7 minutes left in the half.  Florida quickly battled back to cut the lead to just 5 points 21-26 but would not get any closer for the remainder of the half and trail 26-35.

Coming out of the break, both team traded baskets on their first few possessions before UCF went on another run again ignited by Taylor Hendricks.  The UCF freshmen put down a big fast break dunk sparking his team to a 13-2 run over 7 minutes and a 50-32 point lead.  The Gators fought valiantly but never go any closer than 13 points as UCF was just too much in picking up the 67-49 first round win.

With the win, UCF advances to the second round of the NIT Tournament and face the winner between Oregon and UC Irvine on Saturday or Sunday.  

STATS

ATTENDANCE: 3,023

UCF:  67 pts, 29-55 2-PT, 6-15 3-PT, 3-4 FT, 39 rebs(10 off, 29 def), 9 assists, 18 TO, 13 steals, 12 pts fast break, 23 pts off TO, 40 pts in paint

UF: 49 pts, 19-59 2-PT, 4-24 3-PT, 7-10 FT, 29 rebs(13 off, 16 def), 8 assists, 18 TO, 10 steals, 7 pts fast break, 24 pts off TO, 28 pts in paint

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS

UCF: Kelly 21 pts, T. Hendricks 17 pts 8 rebs 2 blocks, I. Horton 12 pts, L. Thioune 10 rebs

UF: R. Kugel 13 pts, W. Richard 4 pts 7 rebs

Photo credit: Cameron Robertson/FAAZ Sports