UCF is back in the Big Dance, opening against UCLA in Philly
UCF is dancing!
For the first time since 2019, the Knights are headed back to the NCAA Tournament and this time they’ll open as a No. 10 seed against No. 7 UCLA on Friday in Philadelphia.
The matchup, which will tip at 7:25 p.m. on TBS at Xfinity Mobile Arena, gives Johnny Dawkins’ team a brand-name first-round opponent from one of college basketball’s most decorated programs. It also gives Dawkins a familiar face on the other bench in UCLA head coach Mick Cronin, whose Cincinnati teams regularly battled UCF during their mutual time in the American Athletic Conference.
The winner of UCF-UCLA will advance to face either No. 2 UConn or No. 15 Furman. Those teams are scheduled to play late Friday in the same pod, with the East Region’s Sweet 16 and Elite Eight set for Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.
UCLA is 23-11 overall, finished 13-7 in the Big Ten and advanced to the conference tournament semifinals before falling to eventual champion Purdue. UCLA was 17-1 at home, 4-6 on the road and 2-4 in neutral site games. Cronin has been outspoken about the Big Ten’s demanding travel schedule, and this marks yet another long trip to the East Coast.
For UCF, this is the program’s sixth NCAA Tournament appearance and first since Dawkins led the Knights to an at-large berth in 2019. That season, UCF’s late push included a 58-55 home win over Cronin’s Cincinnati team on March 7, a result that helped solidify the Knights’ at-large berth in 2019.
UCLA averages 77.7 points per game while shooting 47.1 percent from the floor and 38.2 percent from three, while also taking care of the ball at a high level with just 8.9 turnovers per game and a strong plus-3.1 turnover margin.
Tyler Bilodeau leads the Bruins at 17.6 points and 5.6 rebounds per game while shooting 51.8 percent overall and 46.4 percent from beyond the arc, while Donovan Dent adds 13.5 points and 7.6 assists per game as the team’s primary playmaker. Trent Perry chips in 12.7 points per game and shoots 41.2 percent from three, Skyy Clark averages 11.7 points on 43.2 percent three-point shooting, and Eric Dailey Jr. adds 11.3 points and a team-best 5.8 rebounds per game.
One notable area where UCLA is less imposing is on the glass, as the Bruins are slightly negative in rebounding margin at minus-0.5 per game.
Skyy Clark is the son of former UCF wide receiver Kenny Clark, who passed away last year.
