UNCASVILLE, Conn. (UCFKnights.com) – A dominant defensive performance led the UCF women's basketball team to a 65-32 victory over No. 7 Wichita State in the quarterfinal of the American Athletic Conference Championship on Saturday evening in Mohegan Sun Arena.
UCF (20-9) advances to the semifinals of The American Championship for the fourth straight year under head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson. The Knights also tallied their fourth-straight 20-win season, just the second time UCF has had four consecutive 20-win seasons (1981-85).
Facing Wichita State (16-15) for the second time in a five-day span, UCF forced the Shockers into 27 turnovers and held them to a 27.3 field goal percentage for the game. The Knights also used 16 offensive rebounds to score 22 second chance points while limiting the Shockers to just eight offensive boards and four second chance points.
The Black and Gold held an 11-9 advantage after the first quarter and used a 13-0 run in the second quarter to take a 28-14 into the locker rooms.
UCF maintained a double-digit lead throughout the second half on its way to a 65-32 victory.
Nine of the 10 Knights that saw action scored, and eight collected at least one rebound. Six Knights contributed to UCF's 12 steals.
Kay Kay Wright led all scorers with 14 points. Masseny Kaba was just shy of a double-double with eight points and a game-high nine rebounds. Brittney Smith and Diamond Battles each had nine points and Battles dished out three assists. Jnaya Walker added seven points while grabbing a season-best seven rebounds.
UCF faces No. 3 Cincinnati in Sunday's semifinal. The teams will tip at 6:30 p.m. on ESPNU.
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