DAVIDSON, N.C. (UCFKnights.com) - An all-around performance by senior Zykira Lewis lifted the UCF women's basketball team to a 57-38 win over Davidson at John M. Belk Arena on Wednesday night.
"It feels so good," Lewis said of UCF's 3-0 start to the season. "We just keep building on this, get better in practice. Work on things that we know we need to work on, and just continue to get better."
Lewis scored a game-high 26 points while recording a career-best seven steals to help UCF earned its second road win of the 2016-17 campaign.
"(Zykira) did great offensively because she got seven steals and layups, so that's 14 points," head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson said. "She was really aggressive. I think when she plays really good defense and gets steals and tips like that, it really ignites her offensively."
After Davidson jumped out to a 4-0 early lead, the Knights scored nine unanswered to go in front in the first quarter. Five of those points came from Lewis, who put the Black and Gold up 9-4 at the 2:58 mark with her first three-pointer of the contest.
A pair of free throws at the end of the first quarter from junior Fifi Ndour started a 12-5 run by the Knights. UCF started the second quarter with three consecutive steals on the defensive end and continued to push. The Black and Gold took a 23-17 lead into halftime.
The Wildcats started the second half on a 6-2 spurt to cut the Knights lead to two, 25-23, but Lewis came up with a steal and a fast break layup to spark for the Knights. Back-to-back threes from Lewis pushed the Black and Gold advantage to double digits, 35-25, with under three minutes remaining in the third quarter.
Davidson cut the lead to single digits at the start of the fourth quarter, but UCF responded with seven straight points to quiet the home team. Sophomore Kayla Thigpen sank a pair of free throws to cap off a run that put the Knights ahead 44-29 with 7:01 left in the game. The Black and Gold kept their double digit lead for the remainder of the contest.
Zykira Lewis led all scorers and was joined by Fifi Ndour, who contributed 14 points in the win. Ndour grabbed a game-high seven rebounds, while redshirt senior Joslyn Massey pulled down six boards. Freshman Korneila Wright dished out four assists, while Kayla Thigpen finished with three.
#OnZyre
* Senior Zykira Lewis was hot on both the offensive and defensive ends of the floor.
* The Bartow, Fla., native swiped a career-best seven steals on the defensive end, and turned three of those into six points on the other end on fast break layups.
* Lewis connected on 11 shots, including a trio of three-pointers, for 26 points.
* The guard finished with a pair of rebounds and an assist in the contest.
Defense Does It
* For the third consecutive game, UCF has held its opponent under 60 points. The Knights allowed just 38 points for Davidson, the lowest output by an opponent this season.
* In the first half, the Knights held the Wildcats to single digits in both quarters. Davidson shot just 29.4 percent for the game.
* The Black and Gold forced 26 Davidson turnovers, leading to 23 points.
* UCF held the edge on the boards, 37-35, marking the third straight game that the Knights have out-rebounded their opponent.
UCF returns to CFE Arena on Saturday to host Virginia Tech at 2 p.m. Admission is free for all fans due to the UCF football game against Tulsa Saturday night at 8 p.m. Free parking is only available in the blue and red zones. Paid parking will be available in Garage H.
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