A few weeks ago, the UCF Knights were among the best stories in college basketball. 

They were the talk of the Big 12 conference after a three-game winning streak that included a victory against the ranked Texas Tech Red Raiders. The euphoric moment has since been followed by three straight losses, the last coming Saturday against the West Virginia Mountaineers. 

"We have to regroup," UCF coach Johnny Dawkins said. "We have to respond. That's what we have to do."

This was perhaps the most disappointing of the losses. The Knights blew a 14-point lead against the Mountaineers, which is on the NCAA Tournament "bubble" with UCF. 

"What we have to do is we have to understand and make sure that we put 40 minutes together," Dawkins said. "There can't be any more 30 minutes, 25, 35 minutes. We've got to play for the full 40 at the right level. We have to be able to sustain that throughout the entire game." 

The Knights have six games remaining to get things back running smoothly. A strong showing is needed for any chance of earning an at-large bid to the Tournament. It won't be easy with games against the No. 22 BYU Cougars and a rematch with West Virginia to close the season. 

"We've got to fight through it," Dawkins said. "It's just that simple. Nothing is going to be given to you in this league. We understand that. We have to look at what we did wrong. We have to look at what adjustments that's necessary and come out with a better performance the next time we step foot on the floor. It's that simple because this league is tough and every night you're facing somebody that can beat you and you're going to have to play well to win." 

Here's what ESPN college basketball insider Jeff Borzello had to say on X after the Knights' most recent loss: "UCF blows a 14-point lead in the final 11+ minutes to lose at home to West Virginia. Now three losses in a row for the Knights after a pair of blowout defeats. West Virginia was on the outer reaches of the bubble entering the day — this gets them in the discussion."

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Shandel Richardson is the publisher of UCFRoundtable. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com