NEW YORK (UCFKnights.com) – A trip to the NIT championship game is on the line when the UCF men's basketball team takes the court on Tuesday night in Madison Square Garden.
The Knights (24-11) face TCU (22-15) at 9 p.m. with coverage on ESPN, Westwood One and FM 96.9 The Game. The winner will advance to the championship to take on the winner of Tuesday's 7 p.m. contest between CSU Bakersfield and Georgia Tech.
"We're excited to be here in New York. Having an opportunity to play in the Garden is special," UCF head coach Johnny Dawkins said in Monday's press conference. "We all feel fortunate that we were able to make it. To make it this far, to be among these final four teams here, is a special accomplishment."
UCF, in just the program's second NIT appearance, advanced to the semifinal with a 79-74 opening round win over Colorado, knocking off top seeded Illinois State 63-62 in Normal, Ill., and topping Illinois 68-58 in the quarterfinals. TCU picked up wins over Fresno State (66-59) and at Iowa (94-92 OT), before punching its ticket to New York with an 86-68 win over Richmond.
The Knights are 2-2 in neutral site matchups this season, including a 30-point victory over Memphis in the American Athletic Conference quarterfinals. TCU is 3-1 in neutral site contests, with its lone loss coming to Iowa State in the Big 12 semifinals.
"We're going to have to come out and play with a lot of energy," point guard B.J. Taylor said. "We have a lot of respect for TCU and the season they've had, so have to come out and expect a tough fight. We've thrived in those moments during the season, so we know we have to play well if we want to come out with the win."
UCF earned its trip to the Big Apple with a 68-58 win over Illinois in front of a sellout crowd at CFE Arena on March 22. The Knights led by as many as 19 points in the second half, and sealed their 24th victory of the season from the free throw line, sinking 11 of 14 in the final 2:22.
Four Knights scored in double figures, led by Taylor's 17-point effort. Matt Williams and A.J. Davis each tallied 16 points. Tacko Fall notched his 12th double-double of the season with a 10-point, 10-rebound performance.
"We feel great," Fall said. "We've prepared all week long and practice has been great. The coaches made sure they prepared us well, so we're really excited."
With 24 wins on the season, this year's squad now has the most wins by a UCF team in over a decade and the third most ever in the program's Division I era. UCF won 25 games in the Atlantic Sun Championship 2003-04 season and 24 games in the 2004-05 championship campaign.
"We just have to go out and play UCF basketball," Matt Williams said. "We have to be ready to defend and make sure we're ready to box out and rebound. If we do that we'll be fine."
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