UCF guard B.J. Taylor
Taylor’s late free throws seal UCF’s NIT win
hit two free throws with one second left, sealing the No. 4 Knights’ road upset of No. 1 Illinois State in the NIT Monday night.
With the game on the line in front of a hostile Illinois State crowd, UCF coach Johnny Dawkins drew up a play the Knights have practiced every week this season.
UCF senior Nick Banyard found sophomore guard B.J. Taylor curling around a screen. Taylor pushed the ball up the court and was fouled with 1.3 seconds left. Taylor knocked down two free throws, sealing the No. 4 Knights’ 63-62 upset of No. 1 Illinois State in the NIT Monday night.
“It was great for our team, it was great for our program,” Dawkins said. “To win a game like this in this environment, just really proud of our guys’ effort. And a great opportunity for us to keep playing.”
The Knights return home to host an NIT quarterfinal game Wednesday to face the winner of the Boise State-Illinois game late Monday for a chance to advance to the Final Four in Madison Square Garden.
UCF (23-11) trailed Illinois State (28-7) 36-23 at halftime in front of an announced crowd of 7,984 in Normal, Ill., but a second-half surge put the team back in contention.
The Knights tied the game at 58 with 3:51 remaining and slid ahead 61-60 at the 1:41 mark on an A.J. Davis free throw.
A series of UCF missed shots and defensive stops followed before Taylor fouled Illinois State’s MiKyle McIntosh with four seconds left. McIntosh hit two free throws to give the Redbirds a 62-61 advantage.
“The last play when he went to the free-throw line, they were playing well,” Dawkins said of Illinois State. “You expect them to
make those free throws and the young man stepped up and hit them.
“I was feeling a little down because B.J. had committed that foul and I’ve been in that position before. You feel the whole game rested on your shoulders because you just fouled the guy under five seconds.”
UCF called timeout with 4.3 four seconds left. Taylor was fouled along the baseline by McIntosh and hit the two game-winning free throws.
“He executed it perfect,” Dawkins said of Taylor. “Whether he got the shot or whether he ended up getting fouled, either way, he stepped up and made some clutch free throws.”
Taylor sensed immediately he could make a play with the ball in his hands.
“Once I got it, I saw the defender wasn’t really ready, so I tagged his hip and got the foul,” Taylor said.”I want the ball in those situations to make free throws and make those type of plays. I knew once I got to the free-throw line, I could knock down those shots.”
Illinois State’s Paris Lee put up a desperation 3-point attempt that fell short, ending a record-setting season for the Redbirds and extending the Knights’ NIT run.
Taylor led UCF with 22 points, while Matt Williams added 15 points and Davis chipped in 11.
Deontae Hawkins paced Illinois State with 15 points.
The Redbirds entered the matchup riding a 22-game home win streak and narrowly missed out on playing in the NCAA Tournament. Taylor said UCF players were pleased they were tested by such a talented team.
“It means a lot for our program just moving forward,” he said. “Really good team they have down there. They really play together . . . . We wanted this opportunity to play against them. We wanted that challenge.”
UCF is now fired up about the opportunity to play one more home game before potentially reaching the NIT Final Four.
“I think it’s huge for us to get a chance to play at home,” Dawkins said. “Who wouldn’t want to play at CFE Arena? Our environment, our students will be back. I’m just excited, I know our team will be to, to play our last game that we can play at home.”
Taylor said he expects a huge crowd to cheer on the team.
“We’re extremely excited just to play in front of our home fans again,” he said. “It should be a great atmosphere in CFE Arena. We want that thing packed to capacity. We want that thing full. That should be the best atmosphere we have all season. We want whoever comes to play us to feel our fans, to feel what it’s like to play at UCF.”