UCF hopes momentum rolls into matchup with No. 18 BYU
Coming off an incredibly exhilarating and energy-exhausting victory over No. 3 Kansas on Wednesday night, UCF basketball coach Johnny Dawkins knows his team can ill-afford a letdown Saturday against No. 18 BYU if the Knights hope to keep pace in an extremely loaded Big 12 Conference.
Game time for the Knights’ battle with the Cougars is 4 p.m. at Addition Financial Arena (Big 12 Now/ESPN+).
Dawkins said the Knights’ 65-60 win over Kansas wasn’t necessarily a message sent to the rest of the Big 12, as some media members suggested, but it was a great win for his program, the biggest victory in UCF history.
“We realize that we’ve played two Big 12 games and we have 16 more to go, and there are going to be games just like [the Kansas game],” Dawkins said. “There are no nights off. Every team is very, very good, and we have to prepare the right way.
“If we don’t feel we belong, then we’re in the wrong conference.”
As guard Darius Johnson said after the victory over the Jayhawks, it was nice, but the Knights have to move forward with two months’ worth of Big 12 games remaining on the schedule. It did, however, give the Knights a definite boost of confidence.
“We’re not done,” Johnson said. “It’s a big win, Everyone counted us out and it gave us a big chip on our shoulders. … It shows we can compete at the highest level. … Our coaches believe in us and we believe in ourselves.
“It’s just about us. We can’t look at the outside-in; we just have to focus on within.”
Of course that wasn’t the case last Saturday night at Kansas State, when Dawkins said his team “lost composure” in a 77-52 defeat. Which team shows up against BYU could go a long way in somewhat forecasting what the Knights are capable for the rest of this season.
Defense was stifling against the Jayhawks, with the Knights coming up with eight steals, blocking seven shots and forcing 18 turnovers, off which they generated 18 points.
“Our offense is our defense,” Johnson said. “We had to really dig deep and continue to get stops and convert on the offensive end.”
Jaylin Sellers led UCF with 18 points on Wednesday, and Johnson added 17. Ibrahima Diallo also had a big game, especially on defense, limiting Kansas big man Hunter Dickinson to 12 points, seven below his average. Diallo scored 13 points.
“I think that may have been the best collegiate game that Ibrahima has played,” Dawkins said. “He was big on both ends for us. … I’m really proud of the way he stepped up.”
Sellers leads the Knights at 18 points per game and Diallo averages six rebounds.
The Cougars (12-2, 0-2) are coming off back-to-back losses to start the Big 12 season — at home against Cincinnati and on the road at No. 14 Baylor. BYU is well-balanced and has five players averaging in double figures, led by 6-foot-7 forward Jaxson Robinson at 15 points a game.
Chris Hays covers high school and college football, as well as college football recruiting. He can be found on X @OS_ChrisHays and on Instagram @OS_ChrisHays. He can be reached via email at chays@orlandosentinel.com.