ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – A pair of career performances lifted the UCF women's basketball team to a 58-43 win over SMU on Saturday afternoon in CFE Arena.
UCF (13-7, 5-2 The American) saw redshirt senior Zakiya Saunders score a career-high 23 points and redshirt junior Nyala Shuler collect a career-best 17 rebounds and tie her career-high with five blocks.
The Knights led SMU (7-12, 1-5 The American) by seven, 18-11, at the end of the first quarter and took a 26-20 edge into the locker rooms. After the Mustangs pulled within three, 26-23, to open the third quarter, UCF went on a 10-0 run to push its advantage back to double figures. The Knights maintained a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter to collect their second straight win.
Sophomore Korneila Wright joined Saunders in double figures, adding 11 points to go along with a game-high seven assists and four steals. Saunders tied her season-best with a game-high five steals.
UCF collected its first regular season sweep of SMU.
- The Knights collected a 60-42 win over the Mustangs in the first meeting on Jan. 3 and have now won the last three meetings against SMU.
- UCF had never defeated SMU twice during the regular season.
- The Black and Gold earned two wins over SMU in one season once previously. UCF earned a regular season victory against the Mustangs and a win in the C-USA Tournament during the 2008-09 campaign.
It was a block party in CFE Arena.
- UCF finished with a season-high 10 blocks, and four Knights finished with at least one block.
- The last time the Knights tallied 10 blocks in a game came at SMU on Feb. 7, 2015.
- In addition to Shuler's five, senior Aliyah Gregory tied her career-best with two blocks. Freshman Masseny Kaba swatted a pair of shots and Saunders tallied one block.
The Knights are off to their best start in The American.
- UCF's 5-2 record in league play is its best start since joining The American.
- The Knights have now tied their second-most wins since joining the league in 2013-14.
- UCF's last 5-2 start in league play came during the 2008-09 Conference USA campaign.
NEXT UP
UCF will hit the road for a pair of American Athletic Conference matches. The Knights are at Tulsa on Jan. 27 and travel to Cincinnati on Jan. 30.
SEASON TICKETS
The UCF women's basketball team is set for its second season under head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson. Season tickets are on sale now for $40. Click here or call (407) 823-1000 for ticket information.
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