ANAHEIM, Calif. – For the first time during the 2019-20 season, the UCF men's basketball team played a game that wasn't decided by single digits, and the Knights were on the winning side. UCF rebounded from an opening-round loss by defeating Pepperdine 78-65 at the Wooden Legacy Friday night.
"I'm just really proud of our guys' effort," UCF head coach Johnny Dawkins said after the game. "We played one of the most complete games we've played this season."
Offensively, the Knights were very efficient, shooting 52 percent from the field and getting 36 of 78 points from the paint. But UCF was good from distance as well, shooting 40 percent from 3-point range, knocking down eight from beyond the third line on the Anaheim Arena court.
Junior Ceasar DeJesus was the best of the bunch on Friday, scoring a career-high 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting from the floor. The guard was also 2-of-3 from beyond the arc and 3-of-4 from the free throw line.
He was one of four Knights in double figures, including Darin Green Jr., who kept his hot shooting going from Thursday. Although his buzzer-beater was ruled a two-pointer against Penn, ultimately giving the Knights a loss, he came back with another four threes against the Waves. Green finished with 16 points on 5-of-10 shooting and 4-of-7 from 3-point range.
"That's who we've been. Our strength is in our numbers," Dawkins said of the bench stepping up. "Our guys understand that; I think they're all embracing their roles. So, one guy's off, people have stepped up for us and give us a chance to be competitive."
In addition to DeJesus going for 21, Brandon Mahan also came off the bench to put up 11 points, grab eight boards and dish out four assists.
Mahan tied for the team lead in rebounds with Dazon Ingram, who also had a team-high five assists and 14 points. The senior went 5-of-8 from the field and was 1-of-2 from 3-point range.
"Ceasar came in and he was aggressive, playing his game," Dawkins said. "I thought he got into a great rhythm. I thought Brandon came in and had a real good bounce back game."
The Knights move on to play in the fifth-place game on Sunday. After the day off, UCF will take on Charleston for the second time this season. The Knights and the Cougars will tip-off at 4 p.m. ET on ESPNU and FM 96.9 The Game.
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