Jay Bilas champions UCF's upset potential against UCLA, citing key players and Bruins' injuries, setting the stage for a March Madness thriller.
The UCF Knights (21-11, 9-9 Big 12) learned the UCLA Bruins (23-11, 13-7 Big 12) would be their opponent in the first round of the East Region, and ESPN's Jay Bilas believes the Knights could prevail.
Bilas published a story predicting every game in the NCAA Tournament, and predicted No. 10 seed UCF to upset No. 7 seed UCLA.
"The Bruins have Donovan Dent, one of the five best point guards in the nation, but UCF has Themus Fulks, Jordan Burks and the Big 12's version of Draymond Green in Jamichael Stillwell," Bilas wrote. "With UCLA banged up, the Knights are worth a flier."
Friday's matchup is the first meeting between these two programs; they are not only in different conferences but on opposite sides of the nation. Despite the unfamiliarity, UCF coach Johnny Dawkins and UCLA coach Mick Cronin have history.
Cronin coached at Cincinnati from 2006 to 2019, and faced Dawkins several times when the Bearcats were in the American Athletic Conference. He leads their head-to-head matchups with a 2-4 record.
Dawkins is familiar with his opponent's coaching style, sharing similarities in focusing on the defensive end. What drives UCF and UCLA basketball are the same philosophies.
"Toughness and the ability to defend and rebound, I think, have been hallmarks of what he's done at Cincinnati," Dawkins said. "And I'm sure he's doing something similar at UCLA. I haven't seen them out there, of course, but I don't think he would trade that or change anything because he's been very successful at what he's done."
As UCF's reappearance in the NCAA Tournament inches closer, the team is carrying the lessons it learned from the Phillips 66 Big 12 Tournament and applying them to Friday's showdown.
"Attention to detail," Burks said. "Start, sustain, and finish, making sure we execute every play and don't take not one of them off. Life or death, every possession. So yeah, that's how we're going to look at it."
March Madness is a "win or go home" scenario every game, but UCF is ready for the challenge. Dawkins and his team consistently preached "treating every game like a championship game," preparing them for a high-stakes environment like the NCAA Tournament.
The Knights beat multiple AP Top 25 teams throughout the season, proving they're a difficult matchup, but Fulks remains even-keeled for the game against UCLA.
"Not going to say too much, you know," Fulks said. "We're just going to play UCF basketball."
The No. 10 seed UCF Knights are traveling to Philadelphia, Pa., to play the No. 7 seed UCLA Bruins at the Xfinity Mobile Arena at 7:25 p.m. on TBS.
Don't miss out on our ROUNDTABLE community and the latest news!
It's completely free to join. Share your thoughts, engage with our Roundtable writers, and chat with fellow members.
Download the free Roundtable APP, and stay even more connected!