ORLANDO (UCFKnights.com) –Tacko Fall. People across the country know him by name. They know him by height. Seven-foot-six. As UCF fans, we know him for his ability on the court, his intelligence, his kindness and much more.
With the start of the NCAA Tournament on Friday, all of his great character traits will be on display for the nation, as the Knights make their first trip to the Big Dance since 2005. For Fall, it’s difficult to put into words.
“I can’t describe how I feel right now,” he said. “It’s amazing. In my first year, I never would’ve thought this could happen, but we made it happen. Through hard work and the guys believing in the process and that we had the talent to do it, we did it.”
With what UCF showed in its first year under head coach Johnny Dawkins in 2016-17, making it all the way to the semifinals of the NIT, many though last season would be the Knights’ breakthrough. Injuries to the team’s top three players derailed that.
Maybe that’s what helped this team get here.
“Whenever you take time to yourself, that allows you to reflect on things and it allows you to work on things,” Fall said about the injuries. “For me, I spent a lot of time studying the game and working out. After returning, all we really needed to do was get our chemistry right.”
And while that chemistry did need some time to develop, as a November loss to FAU might show, it has come together at the right time. The Knights picked up wins over multiple ranked opponents – No. 6 Houston and No. 19 Cincinnati – down the stretch of the regular season, which ultimately earned UCF its first-ever at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament.
For Fall, it hasn’t just been the success on the court that has made the last six months so amazing. Yes, making the NCAA Tournament for the first time as a senior is special. But he also got to see his mother for the first time in nearly seven years on Senior Knight. And he’ll graduate for the university he loves this May.
“It’s felt like a movie to me,” he said. “This year has been special. I’m very thankful for how everything has gone. It has happened so quickly. I feel like the season just started yesterday, but obviously it didn’t. I wouldn’t change it for anything.”
And he’s done it with good friends beside him. BJ Taylor and Chad Brown, as senior captains, have been there every step of the way with Fall.
“It feels great. BJ and Chad were with me since day one,” he said. “We’ve been through it all together. Seeing all the hard work we’ve put in, it’s great to share this with them and to leave our legacy here at UCF.”
Fall and the Knights will look to continue to leave their legacy this weekend, when UCF takes on VCU in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament on CBS at 9:40 p.m.