February 28, 2026; Orlando, Florida, USA; UCF Knights guard Temus Fulks (1) scores in the first half against the Baylor Bears at Addition Financial Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mike Watters-Imagn Image UCF and West Virginia will need to make a strong closing statement when they tangle in the Big 12 Conference regular season finale Friday night in Morgantown, W.Va.
There were times when both teams looked like they were barreling toward at-large status in the NCAA Tournament, but late-season turmoil has negatively impacted their metrics.
UCF (20-9, 9-8 Big 12) has squandered its momentum with three straight wins, including a win over then-No. Feb. 24 19 BYU — Two home losses have dropped the Golden Knights from No. 44 to No. 48 in the NET rankings.
On Saturday, they lost 87-86 to Baylor, the 14th ranked team in the league. UCF lost 111-104 in overtime against No. 13 Oklahoma State on Tuesday.
Themus Fulks paced UCF with 22 points against Oklahoma State and Riley Kugel added 18 points in the second game due to an ankle injury that forced her out of both contests.
“We have to understand the importance of regrouping and responding,” UCF coach Johnny Dawkins said. “We’ve been doing that all season and we need to do it again. The last two losses were tough because we came home from a successful road trip with an opportunity to build momentum.”
West Virginia (17-13, 8-9) has lost four of its last five games, dropping from No. 54 to No. 62 in the NET. The Mountaineers hope to leverage their home court advantage, where they are 14-3, into a successful trip to the Big 12 Tournament.
West Virginia lost 65-63 on the road to Kansas State on Tuesday. The Wildcats are ranked 15th in the Big 12 and played without PJ Haggerty, the nation’s fourth-leading scorer, but still led 21-0 in the second half.
Chance Moore led West Virginia with 18 points as the Mountaineers’ Wins Above Bubble ranking dropped to 70th nationally. UCF is in good shape at 33rd in WAB.
West Virginia defeated UCF 74-67 in the return game at Florida on February 14. Honor Huff led the Mountaineers with 21 points on the day, while Fulks had 19 points and seven assists for the Knights.
“They’re very talented,” West Virginia coach Ross Hodge said of UCF. “They have a lot of different players that can hurt you, especially with our inability to take care of the basketball to start the second half, which led to them getting direct runouts, and when you put them in the open floor, they are dynamic.”
–Field level media
