UCF Stuns No. 11 Texas Tech in Statement Big 12 Win
For just over 36 minutes on Saturday afternoon, UCF didn’t just hang with the No. 11 team in the country-they dictated the tempo, controlled the glass, and flat-out outplayed Texas Tech. By the time the final horn sounded inside Addition Financial Arena, there was no mistaking it: the Citronauts belonged on this stage, and they made that loud and clear with an 88-80 win that sent a message across the Big 12.
This wasn’t just a marquee win-it was a historic one. UCF improved to 17-4, their best record through January in program history, and moved to 6-3 in Big 12 play.
Texas Tech, meanwhile, dropped to 16-5 and 6-2 in conference action. But the numbers alone don’t tell the whole story.
UCF owned the boards with a 35-23 rebounding edge and played with poise, forcing 13 turnovers while committing just six. That kind of discipline and physicality?
That’s how you beat a top-15 team.
“I thought our guys played a full 40-minute basketball game,” head coach Johnny Dawkins said. **“We’ve challenged them all season about playing 40 minutes - not 35, not 30 - and tonight it took all 40 to be successful.
I give our guys a lot of credit for believing and continuing to fight. Texas Tech challenges you on both ends of the floor, and I thought our guys responded every time they had to.”
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From the jump, UCF’s defense set the tone. The Citronauts opened the game by forcing a three-minute scoring drought and jumped out to a 7-2 lead.
Texas Tech had its moments-especially when JT Toppin caught fire midway through the first half-but UCF always had an answer. And more often than not, that answer was John Bol.
The 7-footer was a force early, scoring eight quick points on a perfect 4-for-4 shooting clip and grabbing five rebounds in the first nine minutes. He finished with a career-high 14 points and 10 boards, notching his second double-double of the season. Bol didn’t just show up-he took over stretches of the game, anchoring UCF’s interior on both ends.
Even when Texas Tech clawed back to tie the game at 20 midway through the first half, the Citronauts never looked rattled. Back-to-back threes from Carmelo Pacheco and Riley Kugel reignited the home crowd and gave UCF a seven-point cushion. A late steal by Kugel and two clutch free throws from Jamichael Stillwell sent UCF into the locker room with a 44-40 lead.
Stillwell made his presence felt all afternoon, finishing with 10 points and 10 rebounds-his second double-double of the season. It marked the third time this year that UCF had two players notch double-doubles in the same game, a testament to the team’s balance and frontcourt depth.
The second half opened with more of the same. Bol scored five quick points to stretch the lead to seven, and while Texas Tech responded with a 6-for-6 shooting stretch to cut the gap to four, UCF never gave up control. The Citronauts leaned on their veterans-Kugel got to the line, Themus Fulks knifed through the defense for a layup, and just like that, the lead was back to six.
Fulks was the engine all night, finishing with a team-high 21 points and seven assists. He was in control, making smart reads, attacking when the lane opened up, and keeping the offense humming. Jordan Burks added 17 points on just seven shots, providing efficient scoring and timely buckets.
Texas Tech made one last push, trimming the deficit to two with under two minutes to play. But UCF had the final word. Chris Johnson’s emphatic dunk in the closing seconds served as the punctuation mark on a signature win, sending the home crowd into a frenzy and sealing the 88-80 victory.
With the win, UCF has now rattled off three straight Big 12 victories-their first such streak since joining the conference ahead of the 2023-24 season. More importantly, they finally broke through against a top-ranked opponent, notching their first-ever win over a team ranked No.
- They’d been 0-6 in those matchups before Saturday.
This wasn’t just a win. It was a statement. The Citronauts are here, and they’re not just surviving in the Big 12-they’re starting to thrive.