Dec. 20, 2008
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - The UCF men's basketball team could not contain hot-shooting Florida Saturday evening as the Gators posted an 89-61 victory in front of 5,175 fans at the Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena. Three Knights finished with double-figures in scoring, including senior guard Jermaine Taylor (Tavares, Fla.), who totaled a team-high 13 points.
The Gators (8-2), who are receiving votes in both national polls, shot 61.8 percent from floor in the first half and 52.4 percent for the game. Florida took a 52-33 lead into the break and never looked back.
The Knights fell to 5-4 with the loss.
"I thought they (Florida) really came out awfully sharp and executed their offense very, very well early on in the ballgame," UCF head coach Kirk Speraw said. "They established things right away. Certainly we were trying to find answers... trying to find energy."
In the first half, Florida registered a 19-6 rebounding edge, with nine of the boards coming on the offensive end. The Gators shot 8-of-16 from deep during the opening 20 minutes.
Four Gators finished with double-figures in points, led by Alex Tyus. The center also added 14 boards, including seven offensive rebounds.
The contest served as the Knights' second game against a Southeastern Conference program this season. On Nov. 26, the squad played at Ole Miss.
Taylor logged just 23 minutes against the Gators. In 16 minutes off of the bench, redshirt freshman guard Chris Baez (Kissimmee, Fla.) scored 12 points. Freshman guard A.J. Rompza (Chicago, Ill.) added 11 points for UCF.
UCF shot 40 percent overall and 50 percent from deep for the game, making 9-of-18 3-point field goal attempts.
Nick Calathes also had a double-double for Florida as he totaled 16 points and 11 assists.
The Knights will open a six-game homestand on Monday, hosting Valparaiso. Tip-off at the UCF Arena is scheduled for 7 p.m.
For the latest news on the Knights, log on to UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.