KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Four Knights scored in double digits to help guide the UCF women’s basketball team to a round one win in the 2025 Phillips 66 Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship against BYU, 81-69, Wednesday afternoon in the T-Mobile Center.
UCF (12-17, 4-14 Big 12) outrebounded BYU (13-17, 4-14) 40-30 and snagged 12 steals.
I’m proud of the way that our players played today. We were very focused and collective as a team.
Sytia MesserHead Women's Basketball CoachEmely Rodriguez started the Knights off with a jumper to score on the first possession, but BYU answered quickly with a three-pointer. Rodriguez continued her hot streak with a three to take back the lead. The Knights and Cougars traded points to tie it at 11, but BYU rallied to go on a 6-0 run to take the lead. Rodriguez stopped BYU’s scoring run with a layup, the Cougars came out of the first quarter with a two-point lead, 22-20. The Knights shot an impressive 57% from the field going 8-14.
Achol Akot tied it up early in the second after taking advantage of a BYU turnover, 22-22. A big block from Khyala Ngodu down at the Cougars’ basket helped switch up the momentum as Kaitlin Peterson went to the line to take the lead. BYU fought back to take the lead and ran with it going on a 6-0 spurt. Ngodu knotted the game up at 28 with a jumper. With just 36 seconds left in the first half, Akot drove to the basket for a layup and Nevaeh Brown cashed in a second-chance shot just before the buzzer to give the Black and Gold a four-point lead at the half, 33-29.
The Cougars came out and quickly scored and took the lead within just one minute of play. Both teams tussled for the lead and it wasn’t until Peterson sank a three into the net with just 40 seconds left in the third. The Knights squeaked out of the third quarter with a one-point lead, 58-57. Peterson racked up 12 points in the quarter, going 5-7 from the field.
Peterson continued to string together points, scoring seven points within the first two minutes of the fourth quarter while keeping BYU scoreless. The Knights continued to rally, going on an 8-0 run to push the Knights’ lead to nine. UCF recorded 23 points in the final quarter with 13 of those coming from Peterson. The Black and Gold cruised their way to the program’s first Big 12 Championship win, 81-69.
Things were clicking for the Knights with four players scoring in double digits. Peterson led the squad with 35 points, marking her fifth 30-plus point game this season which ranks second in the Big 12 conference just behind Iowa State’s Audi Cooks with six. Rodriguez tallied 15 points on the day along with four assists and eight rebounds. Ngodu notched 12 points adding in eight rebounds while Akot recorded 10 points and eight rebounds.
UP NEXT
The Knights advance to the second round of the 2025 Phillips 66 Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship with a matchup against Kansas State Thursday, March 6 at 11 a.m. inside T-Mobile Center.
