Men's Basketball Edged by No. 10 Houston, 69-68

ORLANDO – The UCF men’s basketball team brought a lead into the game’s final possession, but the No. 10 Houston Cougars survived the Knights’ bid for their second ranked win of the season by a 69-68 final score at Addition Financial Arena Saturday afternoon.

Despite the loss, UCF rose to the occasion against the tenth-ranked Cougars, snapping Houston’s nine-game streak limiting its opposition to fewer than 60 points behind a career day by Moustapha Thiam.

The freshman center scored a team-best and personal career-high 18 points accompanied by three blocks and five rebounds, leading a UCF offense that featured two other players in double figures in Jordan Ivy-Curry (14) and Darius Johnson (13).

On the strength of a stingy defensive start, UCF sent Houston to its first halftime deficit of the season when the Knights outscored the Cougars 38-30 in the first 20 minutes and never trailed during the period.

The contest marked the first time UCF held a top 10-ranked team to 30 or fewer points in a half since March 6, 2024, also against Houston. The Black and Gold outscored the then-No. 1 Cougars 31-28 in the first half of the Knights’ eventual 67-59 home loss.

The Knights, debuting their white and Canaveral blue SpaceU uniforms in honor of the team’s annual space game, held the Cougars to just a single field goal and a pair of free throws through the first media timeout 4:17 into the contest.

After Thiam scored five of UCF’s first nine points, Ivy-Curry drained the Knights’ first 3-point shot of the afternoon, followed immediately by two of his own makes from the free throw line.

The Cougars would trim the Black and Gold’s advantage 18-16 just over halfway into the initial frame, but triples by Thiam and Johnson, as well as four JJ Taylor points, spearheaded a 12-3 run that ballooned UCF’s edge to 30-19 with 6:11 to play before halftime.

Dallan ‘Deebo’ Coleman later drilled the Knights’ fourth 3-pointer of the half to help give his team its eight-point lead entering the break.

Houston clawed its way back to a one-point lead with a second half-opening 9-0 stretch, but UCF continued to demonstrate its resolve, authoring a 14-8 response led by two triples and eight points by Johnson.

After the Cougars again surged to a 61-56 lead with just under six minutes to play, Ivy-Curry and Thiam combined for seven points before Keyshawn Hall, fresh off his 40-point display against the Arizona State Sun Devils, added a free throw to push the Black and Gold ahead, 66-65.

Hall would later cash in on a layup attempt with nine seconds on the clock, but Houston escaped with its one-point victory on a last-second lay-in by J’Wan Roberts.

UP NEXT

The Knights look to bounce back in their next opportunity for a top 10 win, when the squad travels to Ames, Iowa, for a matchup with the No. 2 Iowa State Cyclones. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. from the Hilton Coliseum Jan. 21, and will be streamed on ESPN+.

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