Aug. 12, 2011
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By Doug Richards
UCFAthletics.com
OTTAWA, Ontario (UCFAthletics.com) - Playing against the premier college squad in Canada, the UCF men's basketball team picked up a hard-fought 93-84 exhibition victory Thursday evening. The Knights, who improved to 2-0 in Canada, were led by Keith Clanton (Orlando, Fla.) with 25 points and P.J. Gaynor (Jacksonville, Fla.) with 23 points.
Carleton is the top Canadian college program in the country and has won seven of the last nine national titles, including the 2010-11 championship. On Wednesday, the Ravens defeated Illinois State, 90-80.
"Carleton is a very good team," UCF head coach Donnie Jones said. "We knew that this was going to be a tough, physical game. Our guys handled adversity very well, and played with great determination for the entire game."
UCF's A.J. Rompza (Chicago, Ill.) added 16 points and six assists in the win.
Clanton scored six points in the final minute of the opening half, including a layup at the buzzer, to help the Knights take a 46-38 advantage into the break. UCF shot 51.7 percent in the opening half, which featured several lead changes.
Gaynor shot 6-of-6 overall and made all three of his 3-point attempts in the opening half, when he scored 15 points. For the game, he made 10-of-11 shots from the field.
Clanton shot 13-of-15 at the free-throw line, and added nine rebounds and three blocks, both game highs. Isaiah Sykes (Detroit, Mich.) added 12 points and four assists in the winning effort.
Carleton was led by Phillip Scrub, who totaled 31 points. He made all 18 of his free-throw attempts. The Ravens shot 87.2 percent at the line, making 34-of-39 attempts.
The contest was the second game in two days for the Knights. UCF opened its tour of Canada Wednesday evening in Quebec with an 88-66 victory over the Champlain College-Saint Lambert All-Stars, a team of professional players.
The Knights made the two-hour trip from Montreal to Ottawa Thursday evening. The team visited the Canadian Parliament before heading to the gym.
UCF will play its final game in Canada Saturday evening at McGill in Montreal.