Written by Zach Bartkus
ORLANDO, FLA. – The Alabama Crimson Tide (5-1, 0-0 SEC) traveled down to the CFE Arena to take on the UCF Knights (5-1, 0-0 AAC). These two teams matched up last year and the Knights took the road win 65-62. UCF was on a 4 game winning streak and made that a 5-game streak after the victory Thursday night. Respectively Alabama looked to win their third straight after beating Murray State and Wichita State. A defense-heavy game ended in UCF’s favor as they won 70 – 64.
10 minutes into the first half UCF seemed to control the court going up 17-6. In that time Alabama couldn’t get anything going after shooting 3-16 from the court total. The run would set the tone for the tempo of the game as the crowd noticed UCF’s dominance.
The Knights would keep the momentum rolling until Alabama went on a nine-point unanswered scoring run to bring the Tide within three points. The half would end with the Knights leading 29-25 behind BJ Taylor’s 9 points.
The second half turned into a different story as Alabama was able to knock down shots they couldn’t convert on in the first half. Kira Lewis Jr. went 5-8 from the field and 2-3 from three-point range. The surge from the Tide was met by the student section at CFE Arena along with the rest of the crowd. After the game Johnny Dawkins said he “would give the win to the student section and the community that came out tonight.” The defensive side of the ball for the Knights was impressive also. They forced a total of 14 turnovers on the night along with six blocks and four of those six coming from Tacko Fall.
Alabama’s Alex Reese and Kira Lewis JR. both finished on 14 points as Donta Hall finished with 11 points and 9 rebounds. UCF’s BJ Taylor finished the game with 24 points and 2 assists alongside Aubrey Dawkins who put up 16 points 2 rebounds and 3 assists. UCF takes on Missouri next at the Mizzou Arena this Sunday at 3 PM ET on ESPNU.
