ORLANDO – The UCF women's basketball team pulled away in the second half to close out the regular season with a 61-48 win over Tulsa in Addition Financial Arena on Wednesday evening.
UCF (22-3, 14-1 The American) held Tulsa (15-9, 5-8 The American) to just nine points in the third quarter to put the game out of reach and extend its win streak to 10 games.
The Knights offense started slow as UCF shot just 29 percent from the field in the first half, but the home team held a 25-24 edge at halftime.
Tulsa took the lead out of the locker rooms, and stayed within striking distance until the Knights put together an 8-0 run to take command of the contest. A pair of free throws from Brittney Smith gave UCF a 42-33 advantage heading into the final 10 minutes.
Masseny Kaba gave UCF its first double-digit edge to open the fourth quarter and the Knights never allowed the Golden Hurricane to get closer than seven points in the period. Tulsa cut its deficit to seven, 55-48, with 1:48 remaining, but fifth-year seniors Kaba and Tay Sanders combined to score the final six points of the game and send the Knights out victorious.
The UCF defense showed its strength once again as the Knights forced Tulsa into 20 turnovers, leading to 20 points for the Black and Gold. UCF held a 41-31 rebounding edge and scored 28 points in the paint.
Destiny Thomas tallied her second-straight double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds – including six offensive boards. Brittney Smith turned in a double-double outing of her own with 12 points and a career-best 14 rebounds.
Diamond Battles added 14 points with three steals and Alisha Lewis dished out a game-high seven assists with nine points.
Next up, UCF heads to the 2022 Air Force Reserve American Athletic Conference Championship as the No. 1 seed. The Knights earned a first-round bye for the sixth-straight year and will face the winner of No. 8 Tulsa vs. No. 9 Wichita State on March 8 at 1 p.m. ET on ESPN+.
GET THE APP
Never miss any UCF Knights news from your favorite team by downloading the free UCF Gameday app right to your iOS or Android phone. The app provides personalized information for men's and women's teams, scores, schedules, loyalty programs and even breaking news. Click here to download the app now.
