Time and time once more UCF ahead Taylor Hendricks has shined for the Knights all through his freshman season and Sunday was no completely different in the course of the crew’s regular-season finale vs. East Carolina.
The 6-foot-9 Hendricks, who’s projected as ESPN’s Nineteenth-best accessible participant in June’s NBA Draft, powered the Knights to an 84-58 win over the visiting Pirates whereas recording his fifth double-double of the season with 25 factors and 10 rebounds.
“You look at the second half of conference play, he’s been outstanding,” UCF coach Johnny Dawkins stated about Hendricks, who scored 20-plus factors for the sixth time. “He elevated his recreation in all places.
“He’s been playing at a high level and he’s getting better.”
Hendricks was considered one of 4 Knights to complete in double-digits becoming a member of Ithiel Horton (19 factors), CJ Kelly (12) and Darius Johnson (10).
Ezra Ausar led ECU (15-16, 6-12 AAC) with 14 factors whereas Brandon Johnson added 12.
With the win, UCF (17-13, 8-10 AAC) secured the No. 7 seed within the AAC event which begins Thursday in Fort Worth, Texas.
The Knights will face No. 10 seed SMU (10-21, 5-13 AAC) at 2:30 p.m. on ESPNU within the first spherical of the convention event.
UCF and SMU met simply as soon as within the common season with Dawkins’ squad incomes the victory, 85-53 on Jan. 8 at residence. If the Knights win and advance, they’ll face No. 2 seed Memphis at 7 p.m. Friday on ESPNU.
The Tigers (23-8, 13-5 AAC) and the Knights break up their regular-season sequence with UCF needing double-overtime to win 107-104 within the first assembly on Jan. 11 at residence. Then on Feb. 16, the Knights fell on the street 64-63 to the Tigers within the remaining moments.
Before a gathering with Memphis, nonetheless, UCF should first get previous SMU, a crew they solely confronted as soon as in the course of the season.
What may assist the Knights is the momentum gained throughout Sunday’s recreation, which they led the complete time. Heading into the matchup, UCF had misplaced 9 of their final 12 video games.
“It’s been a trying season at times for us and we’ve gone through a lot, but I’m a big believer [that] usually tough lessons are lessons learned,” Dawkins stated. “We’ve discovered a number of classes this season.
“We need to build upon what we did [vs. ECU] going forward. We need to play with desperation and hunger in order to accomplish our goals.”
Prior to the sport, 4 Knights — Kelly, Michael Durr, Brandon Suggs, and Ty Freeman — had been honored at halfcourt as a part of senior day celebrations.
Durr and Kelly have exhausted their eligibility however Freeman and Suggs have at the very least one season of eligibility remaining.
Three seniors — Horton, Lahat Thioune, and CJ Walker — didn’t take part within the pre-game ceremony, indicating they may return to UCF subsequent season. All three have at the very least one 12 months of eligibility remaining.
The whole group hopes to increase its season later this week.
“What better time to get rolling than now with the tournament coming up?” Durr requested.
Email Jason Beede at [email protected] or comply with him on Twitter at @therealBeede.
()
Source: www.bostonherald.com