Jan. 19, 2008
GREENVILLE, N.C. (www.ucfathletics.com) - Junior guard Jermaine Taylor (Tavares, Fla./Tavares) scored a career-high 32 points to lift the UCF men's basketball team to a 71-66 Conference USA victory over host East Carolina on Saturday evening at Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum. Taylor recorded 20 of his points in the first half for the Knights (10-7, 3-0 C-USA).
The Pirates (7-9, 1-2) led 54-51 after Brock Young hit a runner with 5:11 to play in the game after trailing the entire contest. Taylor then hit two free throws and scored inside on a layup to give the Knights' a one-point edge. UCF would not trail the rest of the contest.
East Carolina rallied after trailing by as many as 22 points in the first half.
The Knights went 14-for-14 at the free-throw line in the last seven minutes of the game.
"I am proud of how our guys showed their maturity by staying calm after losing the lead. East Carolina is much improved and this was a good win in a tough place to play," said UCF head coach Kirk Speraw. "We retained our poise and came up with some big shots and big plays down the stretch."
James Legan helped the Pirates rally, hitting five 3-pointers in the second half.
Behind 11 points from Taylor, UCF raced out to a 25-5 lead to open the contest. After senior guard Dave Noel (Boynton Beach, Fla./Boynton Beach) found Taylor on the fastbreak for the slam with 8:31 left in the half, the Knights led by 20.
The Pirates rallied at the end of the half, but Taylor drained a 3-pointer with three seconds to go in the period to give UCF a 36-23 advantage at intermission.
UCF shot 47.1 percent overall in the first half, compared to 29.2 for the Pirates.
Taylor shot 11-of-16 for the game from the field and made all eight of his free throw attempts.
The Knights went 15-of-16 from the charity line for the contest, good for 93.8 percent.
Noel totaled 14 points in the win. Sophomore forward Tony Davis (Sarasota, Fla./Riverview) led all players with eight rebounds.
The Knights shot 47.2 percent for the game.
Legan paced the hosts with 20 points.
UCF's next contest is set for Wednesday at home against UTEP. Tip-off at the new UCF Arena is at 7 p.m.
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