PHOTOS BY KURT RIVERS
UCF-USF games are always heated, intense contests. Thursday night’s basketball game between the two teams wasn’t any different. Backed behind a rowdy and energetic crowd, the UCF Men’s Basketball team defeated their in-state rivals 65-59 in the Battle for I-4, at the UCF Arena.
Team captain A.J. Rompza poured in 15 points and 4 assists to lead the Knights (3-0), who beat USF (1-2) for just the sixth time in school history, and the first time since 2008. That game was led by Jermaine Taylor’s 30 points, in a memorable 71-63 victory for the Knights that witnessed the fifth largest crowd in UCF history
Press conference with A.J. Rompza and Isaac Sosa.
TO SEE MORE VIDEO, INCLUDING GAME HIGHLIGHTS, FAN INTERVIEWS AND HEAD COACH DONNIE JONES’ PRESS CONFERENCE, CLICK HERE.
“I think it showed a lot of character for us, especially this soon in the season. People didn’t expect us to hold on like we did,” Rompza said.
On Thursday night, the Knights used a suffocating full-court press defense to take control in the first half and never looked back. The UCF defense forced 10 turnovers in the first half and capitalized by scoring 11 points off their opponents’ mishaps.
The opening half was a back-and-forth game, until Rompza broke the lead wide open with six consecutive points that ignited the home crowd. UCF led by as many as 12 points and took a 38-29 lead into halftime.
However, the Bulls weren’t going to give up that easy. USF came out of the gates strong, taking a 41-40 lead early in the second half and stayed within 5 points for almost the rest of the game. The Knights began to pull away with just over four minutes remaining, until USF mounted a late-game comeback, pulling within two points. However, UCF weathered the storm by sinking clutch free throw shots when the Bulls went into the penalty, and calmly held on to the game.
“I’m really proud of our team, really proud of A.J. Rompza and a lot of the veterans that stuck in it down the stretch,” Head Coach Donnie Jones said.
The Knights converted 15-of-20 free throws, which helped seal the game up and made up for their poor second-half shooting (5-for-23). Overall, they shot 38 percent compared to the Bulls 43 percent.
The Bulls were led by Ron Anderson, who had 18 points and seven boards. Augustus Gilchrist posted 14 points and guard Hugh Robertson contributed 12 points and eight rebounds.
UCF had three other players in double figures, including 13 points from sharp-shooter Issac Sosa and 11 points from Keith Clanton. Marcus Jordan also contributed 10 points with seven crucial free throws.
The Bulls were ultimately doomed by poor free-throw shooting and turnovers. They shot 62 percent from the charity stripe and turned the ball over 18 times in the game, which can be attributed to the Knights aggressive defense.
“We really focus on defense and rebounding. I think our guys did a really good job with that,” Coach Jones said.
UCF has been seeing a rise in attendance lately, which has been a big part of their hot start.
“We obviously have to thank the fans- it was a great turnout. They’re like our 6th man. They get us up, and keep us going throughout the game when we get tired. I think that’s huge for us,” Rompza said.
UCF has now begun the season 3-0 under Coach Jones, and seem to be adjusting well to the coach’s new system.
The Knights will look to stay undefeated when they square off with Stetson, in their first road game of the season, next Tuesday at 7 p.m.
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