DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - UCF scored the first 13 points of the game and never trailed en route to an 84-74 victory over Auburn in the Glenn Wilkes Classic second round at the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, Fla., on Friday.
It was the first win over a Southeastern Conference program in Central Florida';s history. The Knights were 0-27 against the SEC going into the game.
Auburn didn*t score its first points until a DeWayne Reed 3-pointer with 13:06 left in the first half. During the drought, the Tigers missed four shots, all 3-pointers, and committed six turnovers before their first points. The Tigers then began chipping away and climbed back into the game after cutting it to 17-10 at 10:33.
Frankie Sullivan led Auburn (1-2) with 22 points. Reed added 15 points and five assists and Lucas Hargrove 12 points. A.J. Tyler led UCF with 19 points and eight rebounds. Dave Diakite had a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds.
"We shot the ball poorly in the first half and didn't defend great," Auburn coach Jeff Lebo said. "The really big difference in the game was their five-man Tyler had 19 points and eight rebounds in 25 minutes, and we didn't get anything from our center position. We didn't establish anything in there. (Brendon) Knox really struggled tonight and didn't get anything done.*
Auburn used a 7-2 run to get as close as 21-17 with 7:32 before the
half. UCF (3-0) outscored Auburn 20-7 to end the half leading 41-24.
"We didn*t play our principles or do what Coach asked us to do and, as a result, you see what happens," Sullivan said. "Sometimes battling back isn't all that good. We just came out lackadaisical. UCF was the better team tonight because we didn*t come prepared."
UCF pushed its lead to 49-29 on a 3-pointer by A.J. Tyler just over
three minutes into the second half. Auburn got as close as seven, but the Knights extended their lead and put the game away at the free throw line.
Auburn, which played without senior Tay Waller for the third
straight game, returns to action against IUPUI Saturday at 5 p.m. CST. The
Tigers will North Carolina State on Sunday.
