Knights Stave Off Stetson on Opening Night

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By Dan Forcella
UCFKnights.com

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ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) - The UCF men's basketball team scored the final 11 points of the game to defeat visiting Stetson 64-55 in the Knights' season opener Sunday night at CFE Arena. Freshman B.J. Taylor's 14 points led a quartet of double digit scorers for UCF.

The longtime foes, going back to the days when both were members of the Atlantic Sun Conference, were in a tightly contested bout in the first half, as neither team led by more than seven points during the opening 20 minutes.

The Knights used an 11-1 run, highlighted by a pair of buckets by junior Shaheed Davis, late in the first to extend their lead to 31-24 with 3:35 to play. UCF went into the break leading 34-28 on a pair of free throws by Davis.

Stetson used a 7-0 run early in the second half to take the lead back, at 39-38, with 14:40 to play. The two teams battled back-and-forth until the 6:17 mark when the Knights buckled down on the defensive end.

Trailing 55-53, UCF held Stetson scoreless for the final 6:16 of the contest, scoring the final 11 points and coming away with the 64-55 victory.

A WIN IS A WIN
UCF shot just 35.8 percent from the floor (19-of-53) and 27.3 percent from beyond the arc (6-of-22), but the Knights held on to earn the victory in their first game of the season. It marked the 12 straight win in a season opener for the Knights. UCF hasn't lost a season opener since the 2002-03 campaign.

"The best thing is that we're 1-0. We got the win and I'm happy with how we played in the last six minutes. I thought we played the right way. You worry with a young basketball team about how they will finish. They finished well tonight."
- Donnie Jones

FIFTEEN IN A ROW OVER HATTERS
* UCF now holds a 26-15 advantage in the all-time series against Stetson.
* The Knights have won the last 15 meetings between the two teams.
* The rivalry has history as UCF defeated Stetson in the finals of that Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament to earn its first NCAA Tournament berth back in 1994.

CLOSING TIME
UCF was able to hold Stetson without any points in the final 6:16 of the game thanks to solid defense and efficient offense. The Knights made nine stops down the stretch that ended in a block out and a rebound. Junior Staphon Blair grabbed three rebounds during the stretch, while Taylor, Davis, and freshman Adonys Henriquez each picked up two during the span.

On the offensive end the Knights got it done at the line down the stretch. UCF scored seven of its final 11 points at the charity stripe, going 7-for-8. Taylor and Blair were the two getting it done under pressure. The freshman went 4-for-4, while the junior was 3-for-4 at the line in the final six minutes.

DAVIS GOES FOR DOUBLE-DOUBLE
The 6-foot-9 forward scored 11 points and grabbed 13 boards in his UCF debut. Davis played 26 minutes off of the bench to help lead the Knights to the win.

"We're trying to find a spot to put Shaheed Davis because he brings so much to the game. He's athletic, he had 13 rebounds in the game. Tonight we put him at the four spot."
- Donnie Jones

BRIGHT SPOTS
- The Knights shot 74.1 percent (20-of-27) from the free throw line.
- UCF held Stetson to under 30 percent (3-for-11) from beyond the arc.
- By a mark of 42-36, UCF won the rebounding game.

KNIGHTS USE TEAM BASKETBALL
Jones always preaches team basketball with the Knights and his goal is to get 20 assists for the game. However, UCF's 12 assists on only 19 field goals is a good ratio. That means over 63 percent of the time the Knights assisted on their basket Sunday. Their 20 points from the free throw line hindered the ability to record assists in the stat column.

Sophomore Brandon Goodwin dealt out his fair share of dimes on the night though, finishing with seven to go with his five points and five rebounds. It tied a career high for the second year player who also had seven assists against Howard last season.

FOUR IN DOUBLE FIGURES
Taylor led four Knights in double figures with 14 in his first game as a Knight. He added nine boards in 36 minutes on the court. Henriquez, Davis, and Blair all added 11 points each in the victory. Henriquez went 3-for-6 from distance, while Blair chipped in with five boards while shooting 4-of-5 from the floor.

NEXT UP FOR THE KNIGHTS
UCF will host Eckerd on Thursday in its second game of the season. The game will tip off at 7 p.m. from CFE Arena.

POSTGAME AUDIO
Head Coach Donnie Jones

B.J. Taylor, Adonys Henriquez

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