TULSA – Four Knights scored in double figures as the UCF women's basketball team earned a 53-42 win over Tulsa in the Reynolds Center on Saturday afternoon.
UCF (4-1, 2-0 The American) rallied from an early deficit to earn its sixth straight win over Tulsa (1-1, 0-1 The American). The Golden Hurricane led by as many as nine points, 15-6, in the first quarter. The Knights responded to cut the deficit to four, 17-13, at the end of the first frame and opened the second quarter on a 5-0 spurt to take their first lead of the day, 18-17.
The squads kept it close in the second period before a three-pointer from Asia Todd put the Black and Gold ahead 23-21 at the break.
The Knights maintained their lead in the third quarter, going up by as many as seven points on a three-point play from Todd, and led 37-32 heading into the final frame.
The Golden Hurricane cut UCF's lead to three, 42-39, midway through the fourth quarter. An 11-1 run - that included five points from Courtajia Sanders - over the next four minutes gave the Black and Gold a 13-point advantage in the final minute of the game.
Diamond Battles led all scorers with 12 points and dished out six assists. Masseny Kaba recorded her first double-double of the season and the third of her career with 10 points and a season-high 13 rebounds. Courtajia Sanders added 11 points and Asia Todd chipped in a season-high 10 points.
Noteworthy
- UCF earned its sixth straight win over Tulsa and improved to 6-5 all-time against the Golden Hurricane in Tulsa.
- The Knights held the advantage on boards, 42-30, including 15 offensive rebounds which led to 11 second chance points.
- The Black and Gold scored 32 of their 53 points in the paint.
- The UCF defense stepped up, limiting Tulsa to 30.2 percent shooting from the floor, and 14.3 percent from beyond the arc.
- The Knights held Tulsa to just four points in the second quarter.
NEXT UP
UCF returns to Addition Financial Arena to host Memphis on Dec. 30 at 5 p.m.
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