LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLA. (UCFKnights.com) – The UCF men's basketball team lost in a defensive battle to St. John's on Sunday, falling to the Red Storm 46-43 in the third place game of the AdvoCare Invitational at ESPN Wide World of Sports.
"It was a tough, hard-fought game by both teams," UCF head coach Johnny Dawkins said. "I don't think either team had a good flow offensively, and I give both teams' defensive efforts the credit for that. I thought both teams locked in and made it hard to get easy baskets. Unfortunately, we came out on the short end."
Following a difficult loss to No. 20 West Virginia on Friday, the Knights (4-2) fell behind 10-0 early in this one, before turning things around. UCF eventually tied the game at 22-22 on a layup by Chad Brown with 1:11 to play in the first half. Brown's ensuing free throw on the three-point play put the Knights ahead at the break.
It was defense and Brown's ability to get to the line that kept the Knights in it through the first 20 minutes. The Deltona native went 7-for-11 from the charity stripe in the first half, scoring nine of his game high 12 points in the frame.
The shots still didn't go down in the second half, as neither team shot above 27 percent from the floor in the final period. The Knights held St. John's (6-1) to 22.6 percent shooting from the field, but still couldn't get anything going offensively.
"It's no secret. I think we're missing some shots that we would normally make," Dawkins said. "I've seen our guys enough to know that they're capable of knocking them down. There's a learning curve going on right now. I'm confident in them. We believe in them. They'll turn that around."
For the second straight game, UCF made just one three-pointer. Dayon Griffin's hit from beyond the arc with 2:38 to play in the game pulled the Knights within one point, at 44-43, but that was as close as they'd get.
St. John's connected on a pair of free throws with just over a minute to play and the Knights were unable to convert on their next two possessions. Ceasar DeJesus and Griffin both had three-point attempts to tie the game in the final seconds, but both rimmed out.
"I love where we are defensively," Dawkins said. "We defend really well in the half court and that's what we hang our hat on. This team has bought into that as well as last year's, so we just have to build on that."
St. John's came into Sunday averaging 78.5 points per game. The Knights held the Red Storm to just 46 points, but the offense couldn't come through. UCF finished with over 20 turnovers for the second straight game and shot just 60.9 percent from the free throw line.
Brown led UCF with 12 points, adding seven rebounds, a block and a steal. A.J. Davis scored seven points, had a block and two steals, and recorded double figure rebounds for the sixth straight game to start the season.
St. John's was led by Marcus LoVett with 12 points, Marvin Clark II with 11 and Shamorie Ponds' 10 rebounds.
The Knights return to action on Thursday at CFE Arena. UCF hosts Missouri at 9 p.m. on ESPN2.
SEASON TICKETS
Season tickets for the 2017-18 campaign are on sale now. Fans looking to purchase tickets can call (407) 823-1000 or visit UCFKnights.com to secure them today. For men's basketball tickets CLICK HERE.
GET THE APP
Never miss any UCF Knights news from your favorite team by downloading the free UCF Knights app right to your iOS or Android phone! The app provides personalized information for men's and women's teams, scores, schedules, loyalty programs and even breaking news.
