Iowa State's dominant offense and stifling defense overwhelm UCF, who struggles with turnovers and scoring against a top-ranked opponent.
UCF (14-4, 3-3 Big 12) posted a season-low 57 points against No. 9 Iowa State (17-2, 4-2 Big 12) in a 87-57 blowout loss Tuesday evening.
The Knights had a difficult turn-around, traveling to Ames, Iowa to take on another Big 12 powerhouse after falling short against No. 1 Arizona this past Saturday.
Due to hot shooting and forced turnovers, Iowa State jumped out to an early advantage, leading 23-12 at the under-12 media timeout.
Senior guard Riley Kugel was the only player that had it going for UCF, scoring seven of the team's twelve points. Turnovers were also a big problem, as the Knights committed six during this time.
Senior Iowa State forward Joshua Jefferson had his fingerprints all over the game, leading the Cyclones in assists (12), rebounds (10) and steals (4). Jefferson also added seventeen points to give him his second triple-double of the season. He did so without turning the ball over.
The Cyclones continued to dominate the turnover battle, turning UCF's mistakes into points on the other end. The Knights committed 14 turnovers in the first half, while Iowa State surrendered just two.
With under ten seconds to play in the half, senior point guard Tamin Lipsey nailed a 3-pointer off of a Jefferson assist to extend the lead to 44-26.
After the break, the Knights clawed their way within 15, but Iowa State kept its foot on the gas pedal, fending off UCF's attempts to close the deficit.
Junior sharpshooting forward Milan Momcilovic had a huge second half, scoring 13 of his 20 in the final period of play. Momcilovic killed UCF from deep, making four of his eight 3-pointers and providing space for Iowa State's guards to penetrate.
This is nothing new for Momcilovic, who is leading the country in three-point percentage, making a whopping 54.2% of his tries from range. He also leads the country in three-point makes with 71 as the only player to reach 70+ threes so far.
Senior guard Themus Fulks was recently named to the Big 12 Starting Five for his stellar start to conference play, but struggled against the Cyclones.
Against Arizona, Fulks exploded for a career-high 30 points while adding eight assists and five rebounds. However, against Iowa State, Fulks scored just eight points, while turning it over six times. UCF lost the overall turnover battle nineteen to five.
UCF will remain on the road for its next matchup against Colorado. The Buffaloes are a deep team that plays more freshman than any other team in the Big 12.
The Knights will lean on their experience to try and get back on the winning side of things this Saturday at 3:00 p.m.