NASSAU, Bahamas – The UCF men's basketball team is set to begin its journey at the Baha Mar Hoops Bahamas Championship with a contest against future Big 12 opponent Oklahoma State on Friday at 7 p.m. followed by a game against either DePaul or Santa Clara on Sunday at either 4:30 or 7 p.m. Both games will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network and will be live on FM 96.9 the game.
The Knights earned a total team victory on Monday, beating Western Illinois 70-37 to improve to 2-1 on the young season. UCF's defense allowing just the 37 points is tied for the fourth-lowest opponent score in American Athletic Conference history. The performance tied UCF's previous best as part of the conference, allowing 37 points back on Feb. 17 of 2018 against SMU. The record in The American stands at 31, which was set by Louisville against Rutgers in The American quarterfinals, beating them by a score of 92-31.
The Black and Gold have been solid on the glass through the first three games of the season. They average 16.67 offensive rebounds a game, putting them seventh in the country. Overall, UCF averages 43 boards per game on both ends of the floor, placing them 41st in the nation. The Knights have swung from a -0.4 rebound margin last season to now having a +9.7 rebound advantage over their opponents this season. They're averaging 7.77 more rebounds per game than last year's mark of 35.23.
C.J. Kelly led the team in scoring in UCF's victory over Western Illinois on Monday with 17 points. The leading scorer in each of the Knights' three games so far has netted 17 points or more, with Taylor Hendricks scoring 23 in the opener and Jayhlon Young leading the way against FSU with 17 points of his own.
A total of 12 Knights registered points against the Leathernecks. Kelly was the only scorer in double digits. Michael Durr was close, posting nine points while C.J. Walker and Brandon Suggs were just behind with eight apiece. The total team effort in scoring resulted in UCF scoring 38 bench points, one more than Western Illinois scored on the evening.
The Knights are one of four teams in the Baha Mar Hoops Bahamas Championship. UCF has yet to face Oklahoma State and Santa Clara in the program's history and has only faced DePaul once. The Black and Gold are the first game of the tournament with DePaul and Santa Clara facing off after. The winner of each contest will meet in the championship game on Sunday at 7 p.m. while the loser of each matchup will play earlier in the day at 4:30 p.m.
Oklahoma State enters the weekend with a record of 2-1, with wins over UT Arlington and Oakland with the lone loss a 61-60 result against Southern Illinois. Santa Clara is also 2-1 on the year with victories over Eastern Washington and Georgia Southern and a loss to Utah State. DePaul is a perfect 3-0, triumphing over Loyola (Md.), Western Illinois and Minnesota.
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