Defense led UCF to 70-37 Win Over Western Illinois
It’s great to see a team improve on its weaknesses while continuing to keep pace with strengths. That’s what the UCF Knights did against the Western Illinois Leathernecks, winning by a final score of 70-37, reducing their turnovers and shooting better, while still playing good defense.
During the victory over Florida State this past Friday, UCF turned it over 20 times. That number was reduced to just eight turnovers against West Illinois. While not as talented an overall team as FSU, reducing turnovers by 60% provided a signal that the Knights are tuned into what they need to accomplish.
The lack of turnovers also led to more shots falling for UCF. The Knights shot 39.7% versus the Seminoles. That number went up to 47.5% against the Leathernecks. Perhaps most importantly, the Knights won on defense.
West Illinois shot a paltry 27.8% from the field, including 9.5% from behind the three-point arc. While Western Illinois missed some open shots, those numbers were mostly due to solid UCF defensive effort. That type of productivity was great for that game, and it could become UCF’s calling card for the 2022-2023 basketball season.
The lack of turnovers also led to better shooting. The Knights shot 39.7% versus the Seminoles. That number went up to 47.5% against the Leathernecks. Perhaps most importantly, the Knights won on defense.
As for how the game transpired, UCF made its move to pull away from Western Illinois just before the midway point of the first half. C.J. Kelly made a layup to place the Knights up 18-14. That was the beginning of an 8-0 run to put the score at 24-14.
That’s when defense really took over. Western Illinois scored just four points the rest of the first half. A Brandon Suggs layup with just 17 seconds remaining in the first stanza gave UCF a 37-18 lead going into the halftime intermission.
A Taylor Hendricks' blocked shot started off the second half the way the first half ended – with excellent defense – and it helped get the offense going as well. A Michael Durr layup gave UCF a 41-21 lead at the 17:35 mark and the Knights never truly looked back.
With a Hendrick’s dunk at the 9:38 mark, UCF had expanded its lead to 54-29, a 25-point margin. The lead kept climbing, too.
Even then, UCF’s defense was good the rest of the game by allowing just another eight points. When the Knights dug in defensively, it kept the energy high and allowed for the offense to show its depth.
As good as UCF was defensively, the offensive balance was impressive as well. No starter made it to double digits in scoring, but that was due to unselfish play. As a whole, four different Knights scored at least eight points, and Kelly led the way with 17 off the bench.
UCF's next game will certainly be a challenge with Oklahoma State coming to Addition Financial Arena on Nov. 18.
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