It was the “Space Game” in Orlando, Florida’s Addition Financial Arena. A university founded in 1963 with a goal of supporting an expanding United States space program, UCF once again honored its past and its continued presence in the aerospace world, this time with light blue “Citronauts” jerseys that recognized the school’s old mascot, a combination of Florida’s space influence and citrus industry.
Fittingly, UCF lifted off against No. 11 Texas Tech.
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The ‘Nauts, usually known as the Knights, floated through the air while seizing 13 offensive rebounds, leading to 21 second-chance points, and junior guard Chris Johnson blasted off for a two-handed dunk in transition to clinch an eventual 88-80 victory.
UCF (17-4, 6-3 Big 12) has won three consecutive games in conference competition and now has two top-25 wins. It previously defeated then-No. 17 Kansas in Orlando on Jan. 3.
As was the case then, fans stormed the court on Saturday afternoon. Only this time, their celebration took two tries. The first time, they were herded back to their seats after officials determined that Texas Tech (16-5, 6-2) was due two free throws because of a last-second foul on LeJuan Watts.
After those attempts, the buzzer sounded once more, and the pandemonium resumed.
The Red Raiders came into the matchup as winners of five straight, and two of those victories came against top-15 opponents: first versus No. 11 BYU and then against No. 6 Houston.
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But they trailed for more than 36 minutes against UCF.
The ‘Nauts’ largest run was only 7-0, though, and Texas Tech never found itself down by double digits. The Red Raiders were led by forward JT Toppin’s 27 points and 10 rebounds.
They also got 17 points and nine assists from guard Christian Anderson. Texas Tech is one of the better 3-point shooting teams in the country, and it mostly lived up to that reputation with 11 triples and a 37.9% clip from deep.
Late in the game, however, the Red Raiders couldn’t buy a long-range basket, including when Jaylen Petty missed just about everything on a 3 in the final minute that led to Johnson’s fast-break slam.
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UCF didn’t turn the ball over in the second half until there were less than five minutes left, and then Texas Tech gave it right back, setting the stage for a Johnson layup.
Johnson’s seven points were critical, but fifth-year guard Themus Fulks paced the team with 21 points and seven assists.
In the frontcourt, center John Bol and forward Jamichael Stillwell each had 10 boards while logging double-doubles.
Stillwell was responsible for four offensive rebounds and followed one up with a second-chance bucket down the stretch.
Jordan Burks was a big reason why UCF was in the driver’s seat in the first half, and he finished with 17 points.
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Regardless if it’s playing as the ‘Nauts or Knights, UCF has the look of an NCAA tournament team. It’s trying to make it back to the dance for the first time since 2019. Saturday’s win will go a long way toward making that happen.
