ORLANDO — Fans in Addition Financial Arena held their breath Sunday night as the game came down to the wire, tied at 72-72. As the clock drained under 10 seconds, Darius Johnson drove the paint and kissed a layup off the glass to lift the Black and Gold over Utah 76-72, snapping the Knights’ seven-game losing streak.
“It’s been a tough stretch for us,” said Head Coach Johnny Dawkins, “and I thought our guys came out with a winning effort…today we got rewarded, we won the game against a good Utah team.”
The Knights started the game slow, falling into an 11-point hole at 15-4 just under six and a half minutes in. UCF finally turned on the offense with a bucket from Jordan Ivy-Curry in the paint, ending the team’s dry spell with 12:12 to play in the half. Johnson kept the energy moving, immediately following with a steal that translated into a three knocked down by Moustapha Thiam.
Coming out of the second media timeout, the Knights forced a turnover on four consecutive plays. That, coupled with a four-minute-long Utah scoring drought, closed the gap to four at 17-13. A jumper from Thiam tied the game and kept the momentum going before Tyler Hendricks, assisted by Johnson, sank a three to secure the Knights’ first lead of the game 20-17. Hendricks provided a spark off the bench in the first half, knocking down a pair of threes and chasing down a block to keep the Black and Gold in the game.
The Knights’ bench made an impact Sunday evening, recording a season-high 33 points. Ivy-Curry led the group with 12 points, four assists, and four steals.
Once UCF pulled ahead, the game stayed close the remainder of the half, with neither team holding a lead of more than four. By the end of the half, UCF’s defensive performance lent them a single-point lead, 30-29.
Despite opening the game dominantly on the offensive side of the ball, Utah began to crumble under the Knights' heavy defensive pressure, giving up 12 turnovers in the first half, while UCF only coughed up three and snagged eight steals.
The second half continued to see more of the same as the end of the first with back-and-forth buckets as both teams grappled for the lead. UCF flipped the switch and bolted out on a 12-0 run, started by a pair of free throws from Dallan ‘Deebo’ Coleman. From there, a pair of threes from Johnson and Coleman extended the lead to eight and a layup from Keyshawn Hall solidified the Knights’ double-digit lead, 59-49 with 7:58 to play.
UCF continued to apply pressure with a steal from Hall and a second-chance layup from Johnson building the lead to a game-high 11 points at 63-52 with just under six minutes left. Unwilling to lay down, the Utes turned things around, slashing their deficit to just one point, 68-67, with 1:39 left in the game. A layup from Hall put the Knights up by three, 72-69, with 36 seconds left on the clock. But Utah brought the fate of the game down to the wire, sinking a three at the 11-second mark to tie at 72-72.
Johnson, a senior guard and team captain, came through in the clutch for the home team driving to the rim from the top of the arc, laying in a reverse layup to put the Knights ahead.
The Utes tried to inbounds the ball quickly, bur mishandling the ball, giving possession back to UCF and Hall was fouled and knocked down both free throws.
For the first time five players scored 10 points since UCF beat Texas 77-71 on January 17, 2024. Thiam led the way with 18, while Johnson and Ivy-Curry both had 12, Hall had 11 and Coleman had 10.
Up Next:
The Knights will be back in action at home tonight (Wednesday) against Kansas State for a 7 p.m. tip at Addition Financial Arena. The game will be streamed by ESPN+.
Here is the box score:
UCF 76, Utah 72
Utah (15-12, 7-9)
Gabe Madsen 8-12 2-3 23, Ezra Ausar 7-10 6-7 20, Mike Sharavjamts 6-12 0-0 15, Jake Wahlin 4-8 0-0 8, Lawson Lovering 1-4 0-0 2, Zach Keller 1-3 0-0 2, Keanu Dawes 1-3 0-0 2, Hunter Erickson 0-1 0-0 0, Caleb Lohner 0-0 0-0 0, Mason Madsen 0-1 0-0 0, Miro Little 0-1 0-0 0. Totals _ 28-55 8-10 72.
UCF (14-13, 5-11)
Moustapha Thiam 8-10 1-2 18, Darius Johnson 5-13 1-2 12, Keyshawn Hall 3-12 5-6 11, Mikey Williams 1-5 0-0 2, Nils Machowski 0-0 0-0 0, Jordan Ivy-Curry 5-10 2-2 12, Dallan "Deebo" Coleman 3-5 2-2 10, Tyler Hendricks 2-3 1-2 7, Benny Williams 2-5 0-0 4, Dior Johnson 0-2 0-0 0. Totals _ 29-65 12-16 76.
Halftime _ UCF 30, Utah 29. 3-point field goals _ Utah 8-24 (G. Madsen 5-9, Sharavjamts 3-8, Whalin 0-4, Dawes 0-1, Erickson 0-1, M. Madsen 0-1); UCF 6-24 (Coleman 2-4, Hendricks 2-3, Da. Johnson 1-5, Thiam 1-2, Ivy-Curry 0-5, Hall 0-3, M. Williams 0-1, B. Williams 0-1). Team fouls _ Utah 17; UCF 9. Fouled out _ none. Technical fouls _ none. Rebounds _ Utah 32 (Auser, Whalin 6 each); UCF 29 (Thiam 9, Coleman 5). Turnovers _ Utah 19; UCF 8. Assists _ Utah 18 (Sharavjamts 6, Whalin 4); UCF 12 (Da. Johnson 5, Ivy-Curry 3, Hall 2). Steals _ Utah 6 (Little 3); UCF 13 (Ivy-Curry 4, Da. Johnson 3, Hall, M. Williams 2 each). Blocked shots _ Utah 3 (Whalin 2); UCF 4 (Thiam 2).
