Carmelo Pacheco Leads UCF to 76-69 Victory Over South Alabama

UCF men's hoops remains unbeaten after a 76-69 victory over South Alabama on Tuesday, powered by 24 points from each Dior Johnson and Carmelo Pacheco.

As has been the theme for the Knights through their opening three victories, the team got off to a slow start, trailing South Alabama 34-32 at the half.

The Jaguars dominated UCF on the glass in the first period, with head coach Johnny Dawkins' unit struggling to match their physicality.

Junior big man John Bol had a rough showing, grabbing just two rebounds and missing his only shot attempt in 11 minutes of play.

Last season, Bol showed major growth throughout the season, but dealt with some struggles towards the beginning of the year.

Entering his junior campaign, Bol was expected to take a jump forward, but is yet to show it, averaging 4.0 points and 4.3 rebounds per game.

Ultimately, it was the 3-point shot that kept UCF in the game, and allowed the Knights to rattle off another big second-half performance (44 points).

Pacheco, who had made just 2-of-5 attempts from distance entering the game, exploded for eight 3-point makes, marking a new career-best outing.

As one of four returning players from last year's team, Pacheco will fill a similar role as Dawkins' spark plug off the bench.

Pacheco averaged 15.6 minutes and 4.6 points per game on 39.4-percent 3-point shooting, while doing almost all of his damage from beyond the arc.

The former Mount St. Mary's marksman made just four 2-point field goals compared to 43 deep balls. Pacheco made two or more 3-pointers in 13 games, including a mid-season streak of four consecutive outings.

Having Pacheco shooting at a high level gives UCF another dangerous perimeter shooter to space the floor and play alongside Johnson, who continued his stellar season.

Entering the game averaging north of 36 points per game, Johnson did a lot of damage as a passer, notching a career-high nine dimes without committing a turnover.

Johnson's improved value outside of scoring has been noticeable to begin the season, as he looks like Dawkins' far-and-away best player.

Defensively, Johnson recorded five steals, while showing a high level of engagement when guarding the ball.

But, scoring was not an issue for the former top-40 high school recruit either, pouring in 24 points on another efficient night (7-of-12).

Sitting at 31 points per game, Johnson is still the nation's leading scorer, and he is making his presence be known in his second stint back with UCF.

The Knights are back in action Friday against Georgia Southern (1-3) at 8:00 p.m.