National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Central Florida 77, Oklahoma State 71
When: 8:00 PM ET, Wednesday, February 28, 2024
Where: Gallagher-Iba Arena, Stillwater, Oklahoma
Officials: # Marques Pettigrew, # Tony Padilla, # Darron George
Attendance: 5044

Darius Johnson scored 17 points and Jaylin Sellers and Shemarri Allen each added 12 on Wednesday, lifting UCF to a 77-71 victory over Oklahoma State in Stillwater, Okla.

Johnson overcame a 4-for-11 performance from the floor and 1-for-5 effort from 3-point range by making 8 of 9 foul shots.

C.J. Walker scored 10 points for the Knights (15-12, 6-9 Big 12), who erased a 12-point deficit in the first half to snap a five-game skid on the road. The win was UCF's second in nine tries on the road this season and first since posting a 77-71 victory against Texas on Jan. 17.

UCF held a 40-27 edge in rebounds Wednesday, with Walker and Thierno Sylla each recording six.

Oklahoma State's John-Michael Wright sank five 3-pointers to highlight his season-high 22-point performance. Wright's previous season high was 16, initially set in a 74-69 loss to TCU on Jan. 23 and matched in an 83-54 loss to Kansas on Jan. 30.

Eric Dailey Jr. scored 15 points and Javon Small added 13 for the Cowboys (12-16, 4-11), who have lost two in a row and 11 of their last 15 games.

Sellers' layup boosted UCF's lead to 64-56 before Small scored seven straight points to bring Oklahoma State within one. The Knights made four free throws and Ibrahima Diallo added a layup to push his team's advantage to 70-63 with 2:41 left in the second half.

UCF made seven free throws to keep the Cowboys at bay the rest of the way.

Oklahoma State built a 12-point lead at 36-24 with 4:37 remaining in the first half before UCF quickly halved its deficit after 3-pointers by Marchelus Avery and Walker.

The Knights scored 14 of the last 20 points in the first half and 22 of the first 33 in the second to seize a 60-53 advantage, with Sellers connecting twice from beyond the arc and Johnson added another to highlight the second-half surge.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Central Florida   Oklahoma State
Darius Johnson 15 Scoring John-Michael Wright 22
Shemarri Allen 2 Assists Jamyron Keller 3
Thierno Sylla 6 Rebounds Brandon Garrison 6
Shemarri Allen 10 Free Throws Made Eric Dailey Jr. 7
Shemarri Allen 2 Steals Jamyron Keller 2
Omar Payne 1 Blocks Brandon Garrison 3
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Central Florida 77 42.3 6-16 27-36 7 34 1 7 17
Oklahoma State 71 40.4 5-20 24-30 8 25 3 8 12