UNCASVILLE, Conn. (UCFKnights.com) – As the UCF women's basketball team prepares for the 2017 Frontier Communications American Athletic Conference Championship, a pair of Knights received recognition from the league office for their performance throughout the 2016-17 season. Junior Aliyah Gregory was named to The American First Team, and senior Zykira Lewis was named to The American Third Team.
"I'm very excited that the coaches voted for these two, especially Aliyah," head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson said. "Everybody knew that Zykira was one of the top guards in the conference, but it's really exciting for Aliyah to be able to make first team. It shows that they both bought in to what we're trying to do here. I'm really proud of them, and they're really excited."
The duo combined to lead UCF in scoring in 15 of 16 league contests, and 25 of 29 games this season.
Gregory, who earned her first postseason league honor, ranked among the top scorers in The American all season, averaging 19.9 points per game in league play.
Pouring in a career-high 34 points, she led UCF to its first-ever win over a ranked opponent as the Knights earned a 66-62 victory against No. 22 USF. Gregory made a career-best 15 field goals, which is tied for the fourth-most in a single game at UCF, to help the Black and Gold earn its first win in Tampa.
Entering the contest against the Bulls, Gregory was 10 points shy of becoming the 22nd Knight to score 1,000 career points. She accomplished the feat in the first quarter of action in the Sun Dome.
This season, the Tampa, Fla., native scored in double figures in 15 of 16 games, with seven 20-plus point games and back-to-back 30-plus point performances. As a sophomore, Gregory scored in double figures in 13 of 18 contests, only scoring more than 20 points once.
Lewis, who earned her third league honor over her four-year UCF career, led the league in steals and ranked among the top 10 in scoring this season.
The Bartow, Fla., native became the all-time leader in three-pointers at UCF with 257. Draining 66 from behind the arc, she posted her third-consecutive season of ranking among UCF's single-season three-point top 10. Lewis is second on the all-time scoring list with 1,805 points, and has averaged double figures in all four seasons as a Knight.
Defensively, Lewis' 91 steals on the season ranks 10th nationally, and puts her third on the single season list at UCF. She collected 44 during league play, swiping five in UCF's upset of No. 22 USF.
Projected to finish eighth in the preseason poll, the Knights ended the year with a 9-7 record to finish fourth in the league standings. UCF won six of its last seven games to close out the regular season with a 19-10 record, the most victories since the 2010-11 campaign.
As the fourth seed, UCF has first-round bye in the tournament and will face No. 5 Tulane on Saturday at noon on ESPN3. The Knights earned a 56-51 victory over the Green Wave on Feb. 22. The winner will advance to Sunday's semifinals at 5 p.m. on ESPN2.