The UCF Knights hosted the #3 Kansas Jayhawks in front of a sold out crowd for their first home opener in the Big 12 Conference on Wednesday night in Orlando, FL at Addition Financial Arena. The unranked Knights(9-4 overall 0-1 Big 12) entered the contest coming off of a disappointing loss at Kansas State in the first Big 12 conference game.  The Jayhawks(14-1 overall 1-0 in Big 12) came in riding an eight game win streak which included 2 top 5 opponents.

UCF jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead which included a 3-pointer and a tomahawk dunk from their leading scorer Jaylin Sellers which the crowd.  Kansas settled in and responded with a 12 point run of their own.  Throughout the majority of the first half, Kansas asserted themselves with stellar shooting and extended their lead to as much as 16 points before UCF made a run.  With 3:20 left before the break, the Knights’ junior point guard, Darius Johnson led off a 10 point run while scoring 6 of the 10.  The UCF run also included a key block by transfer Omar Payne on an attempted dunk by Kansas’ Parker Braun.  The Knights managed to cut the lead to 6 points before Kevin McCullar Jr hit a jumper just before the halftime buzzer to give Kansas a 37-29 lead heading into the locker rooms.

UCF came out of the break executing a tough zone defense forcing several key turnovers while scoring on 9 of their first 13 possessions of the half and tied the game at 43-43 with 14:04 left to play.  Kansas guard, Nicolas Timberlake then made 1 of 2 free throws to give the Jayhawks a 1 point lead only to see it quickly disappear as UCF went on a 9-2 point run to give the Knights a 7 point lead with just over 10 minutes to play.  

Over the next 3 1/2 minutes, Kansas rattled off 8 unanswered points to regain a 1 point lead.  A clutch 3-pointer from Darius Johnson followed by a dunk from Omar Payne pushed UCF back up to a 4 point lead.  However, the UCF lead disappeared quickly as Kansas rattled off the next 4 points and tie the game once again.  

With the game in the balance and just 2:58 to play, UCF went on a timely 6 point run spanning just over 2 minutes to give the Knights a 63-57 lead.  Kansas 7’2” star center hit a 3 pointer to cut the Knights lead to 63-60 with 17 seconds left to play.  Darius Johnson was clutch down the stretch for the Knights in making 2 critical free throws to extends their lead to 2 possessions. Kansas missed an ensuing 3 point shot sealing the upset for the Knights 65-60 and sending the UCF fans into a frenzied court storming.  

The UCF victory marks a Knights win over their highest ranked opponent in program history.

In the win, the UCF Knights improve to 10-4 overall 1-1 in Big 12 Conference.  They will host the BYU Cougars on Saturday, January 13 at 4 p.m. in Orlando, FL at Addition Financial Arena.

With the loss, the Kansas Jayhawks drop to 14-2 overall 1-1 Big 12 Conference.  They will look to rebound back at home hosting the #9 Oklahoma Sooners on Saturday, January 13 at 2 p.m. in Lawernce, KS at Allen Fieldhouse.

STATS

ATTENDANCE: 9,469

UCF: 65pts, 22-52 2-PT 42.3%, 7-20 3-PT 35.0%, 14-18 FT 77.8%, 28 rebs(9 off, 19 def), 12 assists, 13 TO, 8 steals, 6 pts fast break, 18 pts off TO, 26 pts in paint

Kansas: 60 pts, 24-47 2-PT 51.1%, 6-18 3-PT 33.3%, 6-11 FT, 32 rebs(8 off, 24 def), 20 assists, 18 TO, 6 steals, 13 pts fast break, 12 pts off TO, 32 pts in paint

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS

UCF: J. Sellers 18pts, D. Johnson 17 pts 6 assits, I. Diallo 13pts 5reb, CJ Walker 7pts 3 blocks

Kansas: K. Macular Jr 16 pts 6rebs 5 assists, H. Dickinson 12pts, KJ Adams Jr 10pts 7rebs

Photo credit: (cover)Sean Russell/FAAZ Sports; (gallery)Cameron Robertson & Sean Russell/FAAZ Sports