Times wires
Thursday, March 10, 2011
EL PASO, Texas — UCF coach Joi Williams delivered a fiery halftime speech Thursday, telling players they were one half away from the season ending.
"Like a hurricane," guard D'Nay Daniels said of the talk.
The No. 2-seeded Knights responded, erasing a 15-point UAB halftime lead to claim a 51-47 win in the second round of the C-USA tournament.
"At halftime we just really talked about buckling down and getting stops," Williams said.
In a battle of C-USA's top two defensive teams, the Blazers (16-5) held the Knights (20-10) to their fewest first-half points this season.
The victory pushed the Knights to 20 wins, their most since the 1998-99 season.
UCF plays Memphis, which defeated Rice 63-52, at 11 a.m. today for a spot in the title game.
coppin state 76, famu 64: The Rattlers (15-15) lost a MEAC quarterfinal game in Winston-Salem, N.C.