Isaiah Sykes has had a strong finish in the regular season.
The Knights squandered a shot at revenge against Southern Miss on Feb. 11, falling 78-74 as a comeback collapsed on the court in Hattiesburg.
UCF (18-7, 7-4) had come as close as a tied game with six minutes to play in the second half before they watched the Golden Eagles (21-4, 8-2) slowly pull away.
That came despite the efforts of Isaiah Sykes, who had a career game on the court with 27 points, 10 rebounds and three steals, nailing nearly 80 percent of his shots on the night.
The rest of the Knights seemingly collapsed offensively and defensively, with the next closest shooter, Marcus Jordan, picking up only 12 points and one rebound. As a team, bolstered largely by Sykes, the Knights shot 52.7 percent, which historically has translated into wins for the team. Not so against the Eagles.
The Knights were looking for revenge after falling to Southern Miss 78-65 earlier in the season, which was their first and so far their only loss on their home court.
They’ll look to pick up some lost momentum at 7 p.m. Saturday, tipping off against East Carolina (12-12, 3-8) at home. The Knights trounced the Pirates 81-63 in their last meeting. Then on Feb. 22 they’ll travel to Rice (15-11, 6-5) for an 8 p.m. tip off.