ORLANDO, Fla. – In the UCF Knights’ first matchup with the USF Bulls this season, the game didn’t end in the Central Florida team’s favor.
The Knights (17-8, 9-3 in American Athletic Conference) suffered a 62-45 road loss to a Bulls team that was ranked 25th in the USA TODAY Coaches Poll at the time, shooting just 34 percent from the field.
Since then, apart from a 55-37 loss to the No. 1 UConn Huskies, UCF hasn’t lost a game.
Her team’s recent effort has given head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson confidence that the Knights are significantly more prepared for their second rivalry matchup of the season on Sunday.
“Yeah, I think we’re gonna be way more prepared,” Abrahamson-Henderson said after practice on Feb. 16. “Obviously, when we came off that [loss to USF], we just finished [losing to UConn 80-44]. So that was tough, and the road swing was tough, and the travel was tough.
“And so we’ve had a week off. And so [we] look pretty fresh and rested right now, and, obviously, we know how [USF plays] defense a little bit more now that we’ve watched them on film, and, you know, we’ve really analyzed a lot of their games they’ve played.”
The Knights followed their loss to the Bulls (21-5, 10-2 in AAC) with a five-game winning streak before meeting UConn for the second time this regular season. That stretch included three double-digit wins and nine-point and three-point wins over the Tulane Green Wave and the University of Tulsa, respectively.
UCF, then, lost to UConn by 18 poinits, but the scoring margin doesn’t tell the whole story. The Knights held the Huskies to a season-low in points, as UConn shot just 40 percent from the field and committed 18 turnovers.
Before their 55-point outing against UCF, the Huskies’ previous season-low was 75 points in a 75-71 win over the Texas Longhorns in Texas.
“Obviously it’s been a long season,” Abrahamson-Henderson said. “You know, we’ve played so many different types of teams, and [we] know [USF] beat Ohio State [University]; [we] know that they’re ready to come in here and play. And so I think our mindset will be a lot different coming in.”
When UCF first lost to USF, Aliyah Gregory was relatively ineffective. Despite averaging 12.7 points per game before that “War on I-4” meeting on Jan. 14, Gregory scored only 4 points on 2-for-9 shooting in 34 minutes.
In her stead, point guards Zakiya Saunders and Korneila Wright led the Knights against USF. Saunders and Wright scored 12 and 10 points, respectively, but both shot around 33 percent.
Since losing to USF, Saunders has averaged 17 points per game, 7 rebounds per game, 3.9 rebounds per game and 3.4 steals per game. For Wright, she’s averaged a career-highs in points per game (10.3), rebounds per game (3.4), assists per game (3.9) and steals per game (2.9).
“I mean, they play point-guard positions, so they’re vital to our team,” Gregory said after practice on Feb. 16. “But the things they do with and without the ball are so important to our team, whether it be on the offensive end or defensive end. So, I think they know the role that they play on our team, and they make sure that they always step up for us.”
Despite all the potential postseason and conference-tournament implications, Abrahamson-Henderson approaches her team’s latest rivalry matchup as just the next most important game.
The second-year Knights head coach has, so far, recorded winning records in the American in back-to-back seasons, something no previous Knights coach has done.
“For [me], it’s treating it like it’s the next biggest game,” Abrahamson-Henderson said. “I mean, that’s what it is. You now, it’s not the end of the world, you know, playing this next game.”
Tipoff between UCF and USF is Sunday at noon. The game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network.
For more on the Knights, as they prepare to host the second-place Bulls, follow Victor Tan on Twitter at @NDR_VictorTan.
To contact Victor, you can email him at vtan@newdayreview.com.
