Themus Fulks totaled 24 points and 12 assists and made crucial late jumper, and UCF overcame a first-half deficit to reach double figures with their 10th straight win, rallying past Florida Atlantic 85-80 on Tuesday afternoon in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
The point guard made 9 of 14 shots, all five of his free throws and added three rebounds as the Knights (11-1) turned flipped a five-point halftime deficit into an early lead in the second half following an 11-point run.
Riley Kugel had 18 points, six rebounds and four steals. Jamichael Stillwell and Jordan Burks had 15 and 14 points, respectively, plus six rebounds apiece. John Bol grabbed 11 boards.
UCF shot 49% (32 of 65) and held a 23-6 edge in fastbreak points.
Playing without its best player and leading scorer Devin Vanterpool, the Owls (8-5) got 20 points and four rebounds from Xander Pintelon, who sank 4 of 8 long shots.
Kanaan Carlyle posted 15 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and two steals. Isaiah Elohim and Devin Williams had 11 points each.
In the neutral-site matchup, Florida International had better jump from the start against the Big 12 school and led 17-10 early in the first half behind six points by Pintelon.
UCF coach Johnny Dawkins called a timeout after Maxim Logue’s dunk at 11:50 to regroup his bunch after the Owls’ 9-0 run and a stretch of seven straight field-goal misses by his team.
Amar Amkou made the half-high lead 14, 30-16, with 6:17 to play, but the Knights whittled away at the deficit and trimmed it to 35-33 on a dunk by Burks. However, the first half ended with Elohim canning a 25-footer for a 38-33 lead.
In the second half, Fulks’ driving layup at 17:05 capped an 11-0 run as UCF led 44-38 and took control of the matchup for the first time.
The Knights’ advantage was as much as seven points with over seven minutes left, but the Owls trailed just 74-72 on Niccolo Moretti’s layup at 2:56.
With a one-point lead, Fulks sank a hook shot with 1:17 left, and Pintelon – an 89% foul shooter – missed the front end of a 1-and-1.
Fulks then fed Kugel for a breakaway dunk, and the Knights hung on for the hard-fought win.
