BYU Looks To Extend Winning Streak In Bubble Watch Matchup At UCF

As the calendar turns to February, we’re getting closer to the NCAA Tournament.

There is still a lot of basketball left to play this season, but games such as Saturday’s tilt in Orlando between BYU and UCF could have a significant impact.

woke up in the 407 pic.twitter.com/IrI7yBY8tO

— BYU Men's Basketball (@BYUMBB) January 31, 2025

In many bracketology projections, BYU and UCF are both in the “Last Four In” and “First Four Out” territories.

So whoever comes out on top in the afternoon Big 12 tilt at Addition Financial Arena could add another quality victory to their resumes.

BYU travels to UCF on a three-game winning streak

BYU is riding high in Orlando with a three-game winning streak. It’s the first time since joining the Big 12 Conference last year that the Cougars have reeled off three consecutive wins in league play.

BYU earned its first Quad One victory earlier this week when they took down Baylor in overtime. Now, they are looking for their second Quad One in as many games.

BYU freshman Kanon Catchings was a star off the bench in the Baylor win as he scored 23 points off the bench. Catchings was a perfect 8-for-8 from 3-point range.

BYU has been knocking down threes during its win streak as a team. In the past three games, the Cougars hit 48.3% of its threes from beyond the arc.

Will they be able to continue scoring at a high level on the road? BYU is 1-4 in true road games this season. The Cougars one victory was on January 21 at Colorado, which started its three-game winning streak.

Who is ready to play defense?

BYU and UCF have potent offenses. Even with first-year head coach, BYU’s identity has often been tied to shooting the three and playing up-and-down style of play. For UCF, offense was not their strength last season in the Big 12.

BYU vs. UCF Extended Pregame on @kslnewsradio.

Tomorrow at Noon.

BYU senior Trevin Knell will join us from Orlando to preview the game.

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🗣️: Me & @baiamontematt pic.twitter.com/J4t5ZBzYM2

— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) January 31, 2025

These teams squared off three times last season and they were physical contests. This year, UCF is the No. 1 tempo team in Big 12 play, and they have scored at least 83 points in each of their past three games.

BYU has reached the 80-point mark in all their last three outings as well.

“UCF, in particular, they’re as potent as an offensive team that’s probably in the country,” said BYU coach Kevin Young on his coach’s show. “They got some guys that can really put the ball in the basket; they shoot a lot of threes, they play really fast. So it’ll be, whoever decides to play defense first type of game probably gets the win.”

BYU’s defense is ninth in the Big 12, allowing 70.6 points per game. UCF’s defense is last, giving up 84.3 points per night.

Trends for BYU basketball

• BYU is No. 1 in Big 12 action in team field goal percentage at 48.3%.
• No. 1 in 3-Point field goal percentage in league play at 37.4%; UCF is third at 35.9%.
• BYU is 6-1 this season in games where Kanon Catchings scores in double-figures.
• Richie Saunders is tied for first in the Big 12 in 3-point Field Goals made per game at 2.7.

Getting to know the UCF Knights

UCF is 13-7 overall and 4-5 in Big 12 play. All five of UCF’s losses in Big 12 action have come against teams ranked in the Top-15 of the KenPom ratings.

George Mason transfer Keyshawn Hall leads UCF in scoring (18.0) and rebounds (6.8). The 6-foot-7 junior currently leads all scorers in the Big 12 during conference play with 21.4 points per game.

BIGGER than ever 🤫 | @xkeyy2 pic.twitter.com/28uR1y1Nm1

— UCF Men’s Hoops 🌴 (@UCF_MBB) January 31, 2025

Hall is coming off a 34-point performance in UCF’s 91-87 loss at Kansas earlier this week. On January 14, Hall had a 40-point performance in a road win at Arizona State.

Hall is second in the league in fouls drawn per 40 minutes at 6.2 per game. He knocks down his attempts when he gets to the foul line, hitting 83.6% in conference play.

The mainstay from last year’s UCF squad is guard Darius Johnson. Johnson is second all-time in UCF history in steals and third for assists.

Other players to watch include UTSA transfer Jordan Ivy-Curry. The 6-foot-3 senior guard played against BYU two years ago at the University of Pacific in a WCC game.

Then keep an eye on 7-foot-2 freshman center Moustapha Thiam.

He’s averaging 2.5 blocks per game this season. In UCF’s last home game a week ago against TCU, Thiam had five blocks against the Horned Frogs. During the loss to Kansas, he had zero blocks but was effective on offense, scoring 17 points.

UCF was without key reserve JJ Taylor in the loss at Kansas. His status for the BYU game is unclear, as he is currently “day-to-day.” The same goes for senior Jaylin Sellers, who hasn’t played in a game since January 5 due to an undisclosed injury.

UCF is looking to return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019. Saturday afternoon will be a big game for the Knights, who want to protect their home-court advantage.

BYU vs. UCF

Date: Saturday, February 1, 2025

Tip-Off: 2 p.m. (MST)/4 p.m. (EST)

TV/Stream: ESPN+

Radio: KSL NewsRadio (102.7 FM, 1160 AM — Extended pregame begins at Noon)

Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X: @Mitch_Harper.

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