ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – Trailing Cincinnati by one point with under 10 seconds left in the game, Kay Kay Wright took over for the UCF women’s basketball team.
She made her move, driving by her defender and laying the shot in with five ticks left on the clock. She then stepped up on defense, snatching the ball away from the Bearcats to secure a 56-55 victory for the Knights in CFE Arena on Sunday afternoon.
UCF (14-2, 3-0 The American) took an early lead over Cincinnati (9-7, 1-2 The American), but the Bearcats used a 10-0 run in the first quarter to swing the score in their favor. Cincinnati held the advantage for most of the game, going up by as many as 10 points in the second quarter.
The Knights maintained their composure, chipping away any time the Bearcats looked to put the game out of reach.
Trailing by five, 45-40, heading into the fourth quarter, UCF opened the final frame on a 6-0 spurt. Nyala Shuler started things off with a putback to pull the Knights within three and Wright scored four to put UCF in front.
Cincinnati responded, go back up by four, 52-48, with 2:47 left to play, but UCF had another answer.
A pair of free throws from Wright, followed by a timely putback from Masseny Kaba pulled UCF even at 52. A Cincinnati three-pointer gave the Bearcats a 55-52 advantage with 1:03 left in the game, but Wright and the UCF defense held them scoreless for the remainder. Wright used a pair of free throws to pull UCF within one, 55-54, with 44 seconds left and registered the winning shot for her seventh 20-point performance of the season.
For the second consecutive game, Wright reached the 20-point mark, leading all scorers with 25. She also grabbed six rebounds, collected four steals and dished out three assists.
Nyala Shuler grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds, and tallied the 73rd block of her career to move her into the UCF career top 10.
Just Keep Winning
- UCF continues to make history, improving to 14-2 on the season.
- The Knights have won four straight games and are 3-0 in league play for the second consecutive campaign.
- Sunday’s win kept the Knights unblemished in CFE Arena at 5-0.
- UCF is now 3-0 in games decided by three points or less.
Kay Kay Is Klutch
- Kay Kay Wright has been dominant during her junior campaign.
- The Orlando native has reached double figures in all 16 of UCF’s games and has seven 20+ point games this season.
- The junior point guard dished out three assists, which pushed her career total to 327. She is now tied with Angelica Mealing (2007-10) for fifth all-time at UCF.
- Wright not only scored the game-winning basket, but she collected her fourth steal of the game with just one second remaining to deny Cincinnati an opportunity for a last-second shot.
UCF continues its home stand, hosting Tulsa on Wednesday at 6 p.m.
TICKETS FOR 2018-19
The UCF women's basketball team is set for its third season under head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson. Purchase season tickets by clicking here or calling (407) 823-1000.
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