The University of Central Florida Knights defeated the third-ranked University of Kansas Jayhawks, 65-60. Kansas came into the game seven-point favorites against UCF in their first Big-12 Conference home game. UCF started strong with a 7-0 lead early in the first half, but Kansas would rally to take an 8-point lead at halftime after shooting 68% in the first half. After halftime, the Jayhawks offense stagnated, shooting only 31% in the second half as UCF capitalized on the nine forced turnovers throughout the second half. UCF would also heat up offensively, scoring 36 points to KU’s 23. In the final moments of the game, Kansas would tie it up 57-57 with 3:23 remaining.
After a UCF bucket from Ibrahima Diallo, Kansas would be forced to foul, and UCF junior Darius Johnson would put the last two free throws away, making the final score 60-65. After the final buzzer, Knights fans would ambush the court to celebrate their massive win against the powerhouse Jayhawks.
After the game, UCF guard Darius Johnson would note “It just shows we can compete at the highest level.” He continued to say, “[This] is a great basketball team. It just shows we can beat them, compete, and be a postseason team.” In a press conference after the game, Kansas coach Bill Self admitted, “They were better than us tonight. There’s no understating that they were better than us. On the flip side, we weren’t very good.”
This win was one of many upsets Wednesday night, with the unranked Mississippi State University Bulldogs defeating the six-ranked University of Tennessee Volunteers 77-72. Furthermore, the unranked Butler University Bulldogs defeated the 17-ranked Marquette University Golden Eagles 69-62. It was a happy night for devoted UCF fans, who sold out the Addition Financial Arena in Orlando, FL, and were able to watch one of the most memorable triumphs in recent memory.
