PHILADELPHIA – The UCF women's basketball team jumped out early and never looked back in a 68-31 win over Temple in McGonigle Hall on Saturday afternoon.
UCF (20-3, 12-1 The American) held Temple (12-11, 7-5 The American) to four single digit quarters and limited the Owls to a season-low 31 points on a 23.1 field goal percentage.
The Knights scored 20 points in three of the four quarters and finished the game shooting 45.3 percent from the field.
The teams traded baskets until midway through the first quarter when the Knights put together a 12-2 run to break the game open. UCF led by as many as 16 points in the first half and took a 26-14 lead into the locker room.
Temple cut the Knights lead to 10 points in the opening minute of the third quarter, but UCF regrouped out of a timeout and held the Owls to just five points for the rest of the quarter. The Black and Gold matched their output from the first quarter in the final 10 minutes, outscoring the home team 20-8.
Three Knights finished in double figures, led by Brittney Smith's 14 points. Alisha Lewis added 12 points with six assists. Masseny Kaba extended her double digit scoring streak to eight with 11 points and had four blocks.
Saturday's win moved the Knights within one victory of clinching their first regular season title as members of the American Athletic Conference. UCF's last regular season championship came in 2005 when the Knights competed in the ASUN.
Next up, UCF returns to Orlando for its final two contests of the regular season. The Knights host Cincinnati on Feb. 26 before closing out the homestand against Tulsa on March 2.
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