UCF’s backcourt just got a whole lot more complicated.
The Knights have listed guard Riley Kugel on the roster, confirming that the fifth-year veteran is back after a successful legal challenge that reopened his college eligibility. Kugel, who changed his jersey number to No. 8, returns as UCF pieces together a revamped guard group for the new season.
Arturo Dean, who sat out last season, is now wearing No. 2.
Kugel’s path back to college basketball started after he went undrafted and did not land an NBA training camp deal. A temporary injunction in Monroe Circuit Court in Indiana gave him another season of eligibility, and the NCAA responded by filing a motion to stay the injunction.
His pro detour was brief. Kugel joined former UCF teammate Themus Fulks on the Los Angeles Clippers summer league team, but the roster crunch in Los Angeles made chances hard to come by.
The Clippers had plenty of guard depth with first-round pick Keaton Wagler, Kobe Saunders and Cam Christie, and Kugel saw only limited run. He knocked down a couple of threes in his time on the floor, but neither the Clippers nor any other team offered him a training camp deal.
Now he’s back where he made his biggest college mark. Kugel led UCF in scoring last season with 14.4 points per game while shooting 38.7% from three. He topped the 20-point mark three times and came close to it eight more times.
His return lands in the middle of a backcourt overhaul. Coach Johnny Dawkins rebuilt that group in April’s transfer portal, bringing in Tarleton State transfer Dior Johnson, who is back for a second stint, and North Carolina A&T transfer Lewis Walker, a rising sophomore moving into the Big 12.
Johnson and Walker flashed in UCF’s 81-85 exhibition loss to LSU, combining for 31 points. Johnson scored 18, with 16 of those coming in the second half, while Walker added 13 off the bench.
Walker has given Dawkins a real argument for a starting job, but Kugel’s arrival changes the picture again. The 6-foot-5 guard brings NCAA Tournament experience and gives UCF another option in what could be a dynamic Big 12 backcourt alongside Johnson.
He, Bol, Carmelo Pacheco and Elijah Hulsewe helped UCF snap a six-season tournament drought, and Dawkins now has the choice to lean on a veteran who was a major part of last year’s success.
Kugel could make his return Sunday against Division II Rollins College. His role should become clearer in that exhibition and again in the finale against the Kentucky Wildcats.
Either way, UCF’s backcourt has picked up an unexpected boost just before the regular season - the kind that could help the Knights chase back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances.
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Kugel's return comes after an Indiana Circuit Court judge granted him and other former college athletes an additional year of eligibility, a ruling that reopened the door for a second collegiate stop. Dawkins and several teammates have already shown clear excitement about having him back, and the timing matters with exhibition play approaching as UCF continues sorting out roles and lineup options. [Read more 🡒]
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