UCF basketball (17-4) was under the radar entering a home matchup versus Texas Tech (16-5), but everyone should be taking the Knights seriously after their 88-80 victory over No. 11 Texas Tech. Fans stormed the court in Addition Financial Arena, as their team greatly strengthened its NCAA Tournament case on Saturday afternoon.

With leading scorer Riley Kugel battling sickness during the game, UCF should have been extremely vulnerable against a Red Raiders squad that was riding high after knocking off Houston last weekend. Johnny Dawkins' group was unfazed, however, and bulldozed its way right through those barriers. Themus Fulks notched 21 points and seven assists, Jordan Burks added another 17 points and Jamichael Stillwell and John Bol each recorded a double-double.

The Knights' stock is rising, and so is fan excitement. “For those of you wondering who haven’t followed UCF basketball this season, this team is legit,” @Dolfins1 proclaimed on X. “The record is not an anomaly. UCF is consistently winning against good teams.”

“We demand respect,” @mrtruth987 exclaimed. “Will be looking forward to a number by our name on Monday,” @conservativenoa commented.

Article Continues Below

UCF should indeed be ranked in the AP poll come Monday. Perhaps one could have downplayed the upset win versus Kansas given the constant injury concerns surrounding Darryn Peterson, but overpowering Texas Tech at less than full strength puts the program in a new light.

The Red Raiders arrived in Orlando with four losses, and none of them came against a team ranked outside the top-20. They were supposed to take care of business but UCF used its physicality to earn what is currently its signature win of the season.

Despite allowing Texas Tech to shoot an outstanding 56 percent from the field, the Knights dominated the glass and made few mistakes on offense. They out-rebounded their opponent 34-22 and committed only six turnovers. Following a turbulent first couple of seasons in the Big 12 Conference, UCF looks quite comfortable right now.

The team will take a three-game winning streak to Houston on Wednesday night. A road win versus the No. 10 Cougars would completely remove the term “dark horse” from the list of adjectives one should use to describe the dangerous Knights.