TULSA, Okla. – UCF had never won at Tulsa. The two teams had played 11 games in Oklahoma and the Golden Hurricane had come out on top all 11 times. That changed Saturday evening, when Johnny Dawkins' squad went into the Reynolds Center and earned a 65-58 victory to snap a three-game losing streak.
When UCF (5-9, 3-8) was up 50-34 early in the second half, it seemed inevitable that history was going to be made.
When Tulsa (9-8, 6-6) used a 14-0 run to get within one point, at 57-56 with 2:31 to play, it appeared as if history was ready to repeat itself.
Dawkins then called a timeout and senior guard Darius Perry made his way to the paint, got fouled, and hit 1-of-2 from the line to end a scoring drought for the Knights that lasted over eight minutes long in the second half.
"I thought we played with a lot more composure tonight, even with the 14-0 run," Dawkins said after the game. "We executed what we wanted to execute. We did the things you need to do to win games."
Tulsa's leading scorer Brandon Rachal, held in check by sophomore C.J. Walker for just eight points on 3-of-13 shooting from the floor, missed a layup on the next possession and sophomore Dre Fuller Jr. corralled the rebound.
"We really challenged C.J.," Dawkins said. "(Rachal) is one of the best players in our league. We challenged (C.J.). We want C.J. to assume that role. He stepped up to the challenge. He's a tough cover so I'm really proud of the effort."
Up just two points, it was the Knights' leading scorer Brandon Mahan who stepped up in the biggest moment to hit the biggest shot. Mahan, who finished with 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting from 3-point range, hit his final three of the game to put UCF up 61-56 and ultimately put it out of reach for the Hurricane.
"He was terrific," Dawkins said of Mahan. "I'm really proud of him. He stepped up and made a big shot for us. He's done that this year. I'm really happy for him and he stepped up when we needed him most tonight."
Sophomore Darin Green Jr. and Fuller both went 2-for-2 from the free throw line on ensuing trips to the stripe to secure the victory.
Perry finished with a game-high 18 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the field and 5-of-8 from 3-point range to lead the Knights in scoring. The senior also added two assists, three rebounds and three steals in the win.
Turnovers plagued the Knights in their previous three games, committing over 20 in each of the losses at Wichita State and Memphis earlier this week.
Saturday, the Knights turned the ball over just nine times, only the third time this season the team recorded single digit turnovers. With 12 assists and the nine miscues, it marked the first time this season UCF had a positive assist-to-turnover ratio.
With five threes from both Mahan and Perry, and one each from Green, Fuller and senior Avery Diggs, the Knights knocked down a season-best 13 triples in the win, finishing 13-of-28 from long distance.
The 58 points from Tulsa marked the first time UCF had held its opponent to less than 60 points since the 63-55 win over Auburn to open the season.
"I thought we defended," Dawkins said. "We finally got back to playing UCF defense. We held them to 58 points and that's always our goal, to defend really well. We challenged our guys before we went into this game that we had got to get back to defending, and I think our guys really stepped up."
UCF will look to use this as momentum when the team finally returns home on Wednesday, Feb. 10. The Knights host Wichita State, looking to avenge a loss at the start of the current road trip, the 93-88 overtime defeat on Jan. 30.
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