UCF rallied fiercely, but Arizona's Brayden Burries extinguished the comeback hopes with a decisive late surge, securing the Wildcats' semifinal spot.
Brayden Burries scored seven straight points in 30 seconds to seal the comeback door shut on UCF (21-11, 9-9 Big 12), as the Arizona Wildcats (30-2, 16-2 Big 12) defeated the Knights 81-59 at the T-Mobile Center.
Arizona bested UCF in its second meeting, advancing to the Phillips 66 Big 12 Tournament Semifinals against the No. 5 seed Iowa State Cyclones (27-6, 12-6 Big 12) on Friday.
The Knights faced a quick turnaround for Thursday's matchup, playing 21 hours after defeating the No. 9 seed Cincinnati Bearcats 66-65. UCF started the first half sluggish, allowing its opponent to score seven straight points to being the game.
Guard Themus Fulks responded by scoring the first basket on a pull-up jump shot to stop the bleeding. However, the Wildcats' offensive avalanche continued, and they built a 27-point lead with under five minutes and 45 seconds remaining.
Six different Arizona players scored during its run: guards Jaden Bradley, Anthony Dell'Orso and Burries, forwards Koa Peat, Ivan Kharchenkov and Tobe Awaka. Although the Wildcats' overwhelming talent shone bright, the Knights refused to lie down.
UCF fought back, as Fulks scored seven points in his team's 18-7 run to close the half. Arizona led 46-30 entering the break.
The second half saw both teams struggle to score, similar to the Knights' performance against the Bearcats the previous day. UCF shot 36% from the field, and Arizona shot 40%.
The Knights showed their resilience, which earned them a quarterfinals appearance, but they couldn't string together positive possessions to cut into the lead. Their opponent dominated them on the glass, as Awaka and center Motiejus Krivas combined for 22 rebounds.
Krivas' seven offensive boards and Awaka's four significantly decreased extra possessions for UCF and forced coach Johnny Dawkins to pull out his defensive trump card.
Dawkins switched to a zone defense, which forced Arizona into attempting tough shots or turning the ball over. It generated the extra possession his team needed to make the impossible possible.
Fulks nailed a three-pointer — his last bucket of the game, ending with 14 points on 6-for-11 shooting — and cut the deficit to 12.
The comeback doors for the Knights open, but Burries quickly closed them shut in 30 seconds. Burries, who finished with 21 points on 7-for-13 shooting, converted two free throws, slammed down a breakaway dunk and laced a three-pointer, forcing Dawkins to call a timeout.
Burries' flurry booked Arizona's ticket to the semifinals against the Cyclones, while eliminating UCF from the tournament.
Now, Dawkins and his squad wait for Selection Sunday at 6 p.m. to figure out if they will go dancing in the NCAA Tournament when games kick off next Tuesday.
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