CHARLESTON, S.C. (UCFKnights.com) – The UCF men's basketball team's bid for a championship at the Gildan Charleston Classic came up just short against defending national champion and third ranked Villanova in Sunday night's tournament final, falling to the Wildcats by a score of 67-57 at TD Arena.
"We played a great team tonight and I'm just really proud of our guys," UCF head coach Johnny Dawkins said after the game. "We competed for 40 minutes. We learned a lot about ourselves from competing against them tonight."
Sophomore center Tacko Fall was impressive once again, scoring a game high 20 points, on 10-of-10 shooting from the floor, and grabbing a game high 13 rebounds. It marked his third double-double in four contests this year and he earned All-Tournament Team honors for his performance on the weekend.
With a core of players from last year's championship squad returning, Villanova proved to be a formidable opponent in UCF's fourth game of the season, but the Knights didn't back down. And they never quit.
After taking a 12-9 lead on an offensive rebound and layup by Fall, Villanova scored nine straight points to regain the lead at 18-12. The Knights fought back. Three baskets in a row by sophomore B.J. Taylor tied the game again with 7:54 to play in the first half.
When the Wildcats then used a 13-2 run to grow their lead to double figures for the first time and take a 35-23 advantage into the break, the Knights could have given up. They didn't.
UCF scored the first seven points of the second half on a jumper by Taylor, a three-pointer by senior Matt Williams and a dunk by Fall to cut the deficit to just five points. From there Villanova once again attempted to pull away, leading by as many as 20 points, at 63-43, with 4:40 to play.
As was the running theme of the game, the Knights battled back. Two layups by Williams, a three-pointer by junior Djordjije Mumin and another dunk by Fall cut the Villanova lead to just 11 points. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough. With just 1:09 to play, the Wildcats held on for the 67-57 victory and went home with the Charleston Classic Championship.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Tacko Fall looked like an elite collegiate big man against an elite collegiate team
- Going up against one the best teams in the nation, Fall scored 20 points and grabbed 13 rebounds.
- He did it all without missing a shot, tying the UCF record for field goal percentage in a game at 10-for-10.
- Eddie Rhodes and Jerry Prather each went 10-for-10 in 1980 and 1976, respectively, both before UCF joined NCAA Division I.
- Fall has recorded three double-doubles in four games this season and only had three all of last year.
"I love coaching Tacko. He's hungry to learn and he wants to get better, so he's very coachable. For me it's a joy to go to every practice and every game, because he has that intellectual curiosity. He wants to figure it out, he wants to be great, so I've enjoyed working with him." – Johnny Dawkins
"I made big strides this summer. Sometimes I don't even realize it. The coaches need to remind me [how much better I've gotten]." – Tacko Fall
The Knights' defense held down one of the top offensive teams in the nation
Villanova came into Sunday's game scoring 84.8 points per game and UCF held the Wildcats to just 67. They were shooting 51.5 percent from the floor and 42.0 percent from three-point range. The Knights held them to 42.1 percent from the floor and just 26.9 percent from beyond the arc.
"Against one of the better offensive teams in the nation, to hold them to 42 percent from the field and 27 percent from three, our guys did an outstanding job defensively. Their effort and energy was there throughout most of the night." – Johnny Dawkins
10-point differential at the free throw line was difference in the game
The experience team won the game by knocking down free throws. Villanova shot 12 free throws and made 12 free throws. UCF, meanwhile, took seven attempts at the line and only made two.
Villanova outscored UCF 19-9 off of turnovers
- The Knights turned the ball over 13 times to just 11 giveaways for Villanova.
- The Wildcats were able to capitalize on UCF's turnovers, scoring 19 points off of them, a number of which were easy layups and dunks after steals near midcourt.
COMING UP NEXT
The Knights' will return home and prepare for their second game of the season at CFE Arena. UCF hosts Seattle on Saturday, Nov. 26 at 7:30 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN3 and FM 96.9 The Game.
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