Three Key Takeaways From UCF's Narrow Win Over Oakland

UCF forward Jamichael Stillwell pulls off double-double as Knights hold off Oakland, 87-83.

Mar 8, 2025; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; UCF Knights head coach Johnny Dawkins argues a call during the first half against the West Virginia Mountaineers at WVU Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-Imagn Images | Ben Queen-Imagn Images

The UCF Knights men's basketball team staved off the Oakland Golden Grizzlies Monday night in Addition Financial Arena to take their third consecutive win, 87-83.

Here are three key takeaways for the Knights from the game:

1. Check that Three-Point Defense

Just like in their loss against Vanderbilt, the Knights struggled to defend against the three, as Oakland shot 43 percent from beyond the arc, the highest of any UCF opponent this season.

OOakland guard Brett White II was the Golden Grizzlies' main distance shooter, going 6-11 from three-point land. Though another guard, Brody Robinson, also made a dent, going 3-4.

While the Knights made enough threes of their own, going 7-23, to keep the three-point battle close, neither of their main three-point shooters, guard Riley Kugel, guard Carmelo Pacheco or forward Jordan Burks, ended up shooting lights out.

2. Take Advantage Of Length While You Can

With the three-point game not going UCF's way, they instead got their advantage down low using their length.

Forward Jamichael Stillwell, in particular, took advantage of this, not only leading UCF in scoring, going 8-13 with just one shot from deep for 20 points, but also in rebounds with 14, six of which were offensive rebounds.

As a team, while defensive rebounding was about even, the Knights got the edge over the Golden Grizzlies at offensive rebounding, 16-10. This helped them earn some second-chance points, getting the advantage there as well, 17-9. In what turned out to be a four-point win, second-chance points created an eight-point swing in UCF's favor.

Length is not going to be on the Knights' side every match, especially in Big 12 play, but Monday night proved that if it can be used to their advantage, then it can work.

3. Don't Beat Yourself

During the later stages of the first half, both guard Riley Kugel and forward Jordan Burks were issued Class A technical fouls, which are called for unsportsmanlike conduct.

Following Kugel's foul, Dawkins was heard shouting, "Don't talk to them!"

A little over a minute afterward, Burks drew his foul after he clapped in the face of an inbounding Tuburu Naivalurua.

Oakland went 3-4 on the resulting free throws, though it was a drop in the bucket compared to their total shooting from the charity stripe, 22-26. UCF was not that far behind, shooting 18-25 on their free throws, but that still created a four-point swing for the Golden Grizzlies. That advantage was once a larger one, but the Knights caught up thanks to six consecutive converted free throws in the game's last 38 seconds.

While foul trouble did not cost UCF the game this time, Big 12 play might not be as forgiving.

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The Knights are back on the road once again for their next matchup on Thursday at 7 p.m., though they'll only need to drive up I-4 to Daytona Beach to take on Pittsburgh for the Legends Classic.

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