ORLANDO, Fla. — The UCF women’s basketball team started its season with a lopsided win Tuesday night, beating Florida A&M 85-56 at Addition Financial Arena in Orlando.
The Big 12 Knights (1-0) controlled the game from the opening minutes. UCF led 23-11 after one quarter, stretched the margin to 39-19 by halftime and was up 63-33 heading into the fourth. The lead peaked at 76-39 before the Rattlers closed with a late push.
UCF shot 49.2% from the floor and 39.1% from 3-point range while holding Florida A&M to 27.6% shooting. The Knights also dominated the glass, 50-32, and finished with 14 steals. Ball security was the one rough spot, with UCF committing 21 turnovers.
For Florida A&M (0-1), Dayton transfer Kamryn Grant scored 18 points, the only Rattler in double figures, and the visitors got 31 points off the bench.
The Rattlers did make UCF work in spots. They pulled down 11 offensive rebounds, which produced nine second-chance points, and turned the Knights’ giveaways into eight points of their own. A three by Kristen Johnson capped a 5-0 run late in the third quarter, and a 6-0 burst later cut the gap to 76-45 with just over four minutes to play, but the outcome was never in doubt.
Niah Rhodes added nine points for Florida A&M, and Tahnyjia Purifoy handed out eight assists. The Rattlers committed 20 turnovers of their own. UCF’s free throw shooting, at 53.8%, was the other number the Knights will want to clean up as the season gets rolling.
Florida A&M moves on to play at Florida State at 2 p.m. Sunday.
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