March 5, 2005
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Gary Johnson scored 17 points, and second-seeded UCF never trailed in defeating tournament host Belmont 66-61 Friday night in an Atlantic Sun Conference basketball semifinal.
The Golden Knights (23-8) advance to Saturday's championship against top-seeded Gardner-Webb, which edged Jacksonville 77-76 in Friday's other semifinal.
UCF jumped out a quick 11-2 lead in the game and stretched its advantage to as many as 15 points in the second half before the pesky Bruins (14-16) climbed back into the game in the final minutes.
Belmont moved to 60-54 with Dan Oliver's two free throws with 1:28 left.
The Golden Knights, however, stretched the lead back to nine points in the final minute, before Belmont cut the lead to five at the end, the closest the Bruins had been since the first half.
Anthony Williams added 14 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Golden Knights, while Joshua Peppers scored 13 points and Kingsley Edwards added 12.
Brian Collins paced Belmont with 14 points. Nick Otis, Justin Hare and Josh Goodwin scored 10 points each for the Bruins.