ORLANDO – It was every bit the brutal, defensive slugfest it was expected to be. In the end, it was beautiful for University of Cincinnati basketball fans.
No. 12-ranked UC rallied from some early shooting woes and beat a tough Central Florida team 49-38 here Tuesday night, in a matchup of defensive titans. UC also overcame a raucous CFE Arena crowd of 7,565, part of which was lured by a halftime ceremony honoring UCF's unbeaten 2017 football team.
"Great maturity and poise by our guys," UC coach Mick Cronin said. "Once we got down, just chip away.