Jan. 22, 2015
UCF Athletics Social Media Directory
By Dan Forcella
UCFKnights.com
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STORRS, Conn. (UCFKnights.com) - Six out of the first seven baskets scored by the defending national champion UConn men's basketball team were from beyond the arc, and UCF allowed the Huskies to knock down 10 from three-point range in the first half as the Knights fell by a score of 67-60 at Gampel Pavilion Thursday.
"The difference between the last game and this game is that we played with courage," head coach Donnie Jones said after the contest.
A three-pointer by Omar Calhoun ignited a 19-2 UConn run midway through the first half that put the Huskies up 36-18 when Ryan Boatright hit the team's ninth triple of the half with 5:26 to play. UCF could have rolled over.
They didn't. The Knights stopped the run when junior Staphon Blair put back a rebound off of his own missed shot and UCF continued to finish off the frame with a 15-3 spurt.
Freshman B.J. Taylor converted a traditional three-point play and sophomore Justin McBride threw down a dunk on the break before senior Kasey Wilson got in on the action with a three-pointer from the wing.
McBride then finished the first half off with two free throws as the Knights scored the final 10 points to make it just 39-33 in favor of the Huskies at the break.
The two teams battled back-and-forth in the second half with UConn stretching its lead to as many as 13 points when Amida Brimah hit a free throw to make it 53-40 with 11:53 to play.
Again, the Knights fought back. An 8-1 stretch that included a three by freshman Adonys Henriquez and five points from junior Daiquan Walker brought it back to 54-48 with 8:09 on the clock.
UCF got as close as five points, when Henriquez knocked down a second from beyond the arc, but UConn was able to hold on for the 67-60 victory as a third three by Henriquez closed out the scoring with five seconds remaining.
Taylor led the Knights in scoring for the ninth time this season, finishing with 13 for the game. The reigning American Rookie of the Week has scored in double figures in 12 out of his 16 games played.
McBride recorded his second career double-double in the defeat. He scored 11 points and tied a career high with 10 rebounds. The Knights outrebounded the Huskies 37-31 for the game.
"We outrebounded them tonight, which was huge," Jones said. "That was a big focus for us. We put ourselves in a situation to do some good things."
UConn's big advantage was in the turnover department. The Huskies forced UCF into 12 turnovers and scored 18 points off of them. The Knights only scored two points off of UConn's eight giveaways.
"We had some costly turnovers down the stretch," Jones said. "You give up 18 points off turnovers against UConn you aren't going to win many games."
The Huskies also shot .481 from the field and .550 from beyond the arc, while UCF finished up .368 from the floor and .421 from three-point range.
Boatright led UConn with 18 points and seven assists, while Daniel Hamilton totaled 10 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in the win.
UCF will look to snap its current two-game skid when the Knights return home to host Cincinnati on Sunday. The game is scheduled for a 2 p.m. tip with coverage on the CBS Sports Network and the UCF IMG Sports Network.