Women's Hoops Falls Short Against Cincinnati, 67-62

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Despite Kaitlin Peterson scoring 31 points in her Big 12 Championship debut, the UCF women’s basketball team’s (12-17) season came to a close against Cincinnati (14-16), falling 67-62 in the first round of the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship Thursday night inside the T-Mobile Center. The Knights led by double-digits at halftime but were unable to hold off the Bearcats after a third-quarter run. 

Peterson, the Big 12’s leading scorer, had her sixth 30-plus point game of the season. Peterson concludes her season with 599 points, the second-most in program history for a single season only behind Kristy Burns (85-86, 691). 

 

 

Khyala Ngodu made an impact with seven points and five rebounds while blocking two shots. Timia Ware came off the bench to score nine points. UCF grabbed 10 offensive rebounds and scored 24 points in the paint. 

Both teams began the game struggling offensively, exchanging brief baskets with neither team able to build a lead. On the other side of the ball, the Knights had Cincinnati uncomfortable, holding them to just 27.3 percent from the field and forcing four turnovers. With the Bearcats holding a two-point advantage, the Knights kicked off a 6-0 run to end the quarter. Ngodu sparked the momentum by grabbing an offensive board and forcing her way to the free-throw line. UCF headed into the second quarter with a 13-9 advantage. 

UCF surged in the second quarter, shooting its way into an impressive 63.6 percent from the field and 50 percent from beyond the arc. Peterson led the charge with nine points and three rebounds. The Bearcats only made six of their 17 field goal attempts and sent the Knights to the free-throw line 12 times. UCF dominated the last minutes of the half, closing it on an 8-0 run and made five straight field goals to build a double-digit lead. In that stretch, the Black and Gold forced Cincinnati into three turnovers and went into halftime leading 35-25. 

Cincinnati found its stride in the third quarter, using a 10-0 run to tie the game before the Knights could get on the board. Peterson continued her offensive burst by scoring eight of the Knights’ 10 points in the quarter to limit the damage. The Bearcats made four three-pointers and shot 58 percent from the field to flip the game, leaving the Knights down 54-45 heading into the fourth. 

The Knights started the fourth with a 4-0 run to chip into the Bearcats lead. Cincinnati was able to hold UCF at bay, making back-to-back three-pointers to build its lead to 12. UCF continued to fight back, holding the Bearcats to zero field goals in the final four minutes and outscoring them 17-13 in the quarter. UCF was unable to overcome the third-quarter run, falling to the Bearcats 67-62.