The UCF men’s basketball team is headed to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in seven years, earning an at-large bid to college basketball’s premiere postseason tournament.

The Knights head to Philadelphia as the No. 10 seed and will play 7-seed UCLA on Friday, March 20, at 7:25 p.m. The game will air on TBS and stream on HBO Max and NCAA March Madness Live.

��AV is one of eight Big 12 teams featured in the 68-team tournament, matching a league record.

UCF’s Bracket Outlook

UCF was slotted into the East Region, which features Duke as the No. 1 seed. The Knights will play their first-round matchup in Philadelphia at Xfinity Mobile Arena.

UCF (21-11) meets UCLA (23-11) for the first time in school history on Friday, March 20. UCLA has won six of its last eight games and defeated Rutgers and Michigan State to advance to the Big Ten Tournament semifinals before falling to Purdue.

If the Knights advance, they will face the winner of No. 2-seed UConn and No. 15-seed Furman on Sunday, March 22.

The Final Four will be held April 4-6 in Indianapolis.

The Road to March Madness

With 13 newcomers and zero points returning from last year’s squad, UCF was dismissed as a bottom-dweller in the Big 12 Conference preseason poll. But the Knights produced a resume worthy of selection with their second-straight 20-win season in one of the best basketball conferences in the nation.

��AV pulled out a gutsy road win at Texas A&M early in its non-conference schedule and went on to upset three ranked teams during conference play (No. 17 Kansas, No. 11 Texas Tech and No. 19 BYU), tying a school record for the most wins over Top 25 opponents in a season.

After edging Kansas in their Big 12 Conference opener, the Knights cracked into the Associated Press national poll for the first time since 2019 at No. 25.

UCF advanced to its first quarterfinals appearance in the Big 12 Conference Tournament after clinching a thrilling overtime win against Cincinnati in the second round.

UCF March Madness Events

• Team Bus Send-off (Orlando)

Date: Wednesday, March 18

Time: 3:45 p.m.

Location: Alleyway between Garage F and the The Venue (4275 E Plaza Drive, Orlando)

Free parking available at Garage F. Bring signs, flags, and don’t forget the palm fronds.

• ChargeOn Tailgate (Philadelphia)

Date: Friday, March 20

Time: 4:30-6:30 p.m.

Location: The Pub at Stateside Live! (1100 Pattison Ave, Philadelphia)

RSVP:

• Watch Party (Orlando)

Date: Friday, March 20

Time: 7:25 p.m. (tip-off)

Location: Miller’s Ale House – Waterford Lakes (641 N Alafaya Trail, Orlando)

UCF’s NCAA Tournament History

UCF earned its sixth NCAA Tournament appearance since joining the Division I ranks in 1984-85. This year’s selection marks second at-large berth in program history.

The Knights earned automatic qualifiers in 1994, 1996, 2004 and 2005 when the Black and Gold won the Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament. UCF received its first at-large bid in 2019, following a successful season in the American Athletic Conference.

The last time UCF appeared in the NCAA Tournament in 2019, the Knights made history with their first win in the tournament in school history before meeting top-ranked Duke in what would become an instant classic.

UCF earned the automatic bid to the postseason Sunday after securing its first Sun Belt Tournament championship in program history with a 3-1 win at Marshall. While the majority of UCF’s teams compete in the Big 12 Conference, the league does not sponsor men’s soccer as an affiliated sport. The men’s soccer team joined the Sun Belt in 2023.

The Knights are the only program in the state of Florida and one of 15 in the country to see both their men’s and women’s soccer programs advance to the 2025 NCAA Tournament.

Road to the Championship

After a first-round win over Georgia Southern, the Knights toppled two nationally ranked opponents in their run to the top of the Sun Belt, besting No. 19 Kentucky and No. 12 Marshall for their second and third ranked wins of the season. This year marks the team’s first season in history with at least three top-25 ranked victories.

“How incredible this group of young men is — I could not be prouder. This group was 2-5-1 to start the season, and to end the season as Sun Belt Champions and win on the road and go through the teams we went through and then win at Marshall, what character this group has displayed,” head coach Scott Calabrese says. “It’s an incredible achievement, and we’ve put in a lot of work. The response from the team, the level went up from our players. They are determined to keep going.”

Heading into Sunday’s championship match at Marshall, the Thunder Herd had been defeated just twice all season, and not on their home turf since Nov. 26, 2023, a span of 721 days.

UCF’s win marked the fifth conference tournament title in program history, as well as the Knights’ eighth overall conference championship, and their first since 2020-21.

The Knights headed to the 2025 NCAA Tournament as one of the hottest teams in the nation, boasting an 8-1-2 record in its last 11 matches ahead of the premier postseason tournament.

NCAA Tournament Info

��AV is in the middle of its 10th appearance in the NCAA Tournament in school history.

With their first-round win over FAU, the Knights remain unbeaten against in-state opponents this season, improving to 2-0-1 in matches against the Owls, then-No. 22 South Florida and Jacksonville.  The win also marked the team’s first victory in the NCAA Tournament since the program toppled then-No. 17 James Madison, 2-1, in the round of 32 of the 2020 tournament (pushed to the spring of 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic).

The Knights will now face No. 15 Georgetown Sunday evening. Kickoff is set for 5 p.m. in Washington, D.C. and will be streamed live on ESPN+.

Their mentality? Don’t tell us the odds.

“I told the team from the very beginning, no successful team goes through any journey that is easy. This is part of our journey,” UCF head coach Tiffany Roberts Sahaydak says. “How are we going to respond to this? You have the ability to go out there and play for them. Believe in how good you are. Visualize doing great things and the rest will follow.”

From that point on, the Knights closed the regular season with a nine-match unbeaten streak, helping them clinch the No. 7 seed and hosting rights in the NCAA Tournament.

UCF will hold a first-round game on Friday, Nov. 14 at 7 p.m. at the UCF Soccer Complex against Maine, who just won its third-straight America East championship title.

The Knights are one of a conference-record eight teams from the Big 12 selected to participate in this year’s NCAA Tournament.

“After what we went through on a weekly basis in the Big 12 this year — a historical year with how many teams earned postseason bids — what excites me as we head into the NCAA Tournament is we’ve seen the best in the country. We are part of that,” Roberts Sahaydak says. “Obviously it’s one game at a time, and that starts with Maine, but the team should be feeling really confident because they are prepared from the physical and tactical and mental tests they’ve had all season.”

UCF’S NCAA Tournament History

This year’s postseason appearance will mark UCF’s first as a member of the Big 12 Conference and first since 2022 when the Knights advanced to the tournament’s second round.

Friday’s home match will mark the 11th time that UCF has hosted an NCAA Tournament First Round competition and the program’s first since 2017.

In all, it will be the program’s 23rd all-time appearance in the NCAA Division I Championship. UCF ranks among the NCAA’s top 25 winningest teams nationally since the inception of Division I women’s soccer in 1982.

Tickets/Broadcast Info

General admission tickets are $10 and can be at ucfknights.com. The first 100 UCF students with valid UCF ID will receive free entry (first come, first serve). Stadium gates open at 6 p.m.

The match will air on ESPN+.

The Gaming Knights beat Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute from Troy, N.Y., to reach the finals, but lost 4-2 in a best of seven series to the University of Akron for the championship.

Rocket League is a video game in which three competitors from each team play soccer with cars. The two teams compete in a five-minute game to score the most goals. Players use their skills to make the animated cars do aerial and on-the-ground tricks to get a shot on goal.

The team won the southern regional competition to reach the finals by beating teams including Auburn, LSU and USF on the way to winning $7,500.

This is the first year for the Rocket League National Championships. UCF Gaming Knights esports director Kevin Quiroga says the southern conference title proves the club is much more than students who sit around at home playing video games.

“It brings a lot of recognition to what we do and legitimizes what we are here for,” he says.

The competition was televised for two hours with peak viewership at more than 26,000, Quiroga says. Average viewership was more than 15,000.

A 2018 report in Forbes magazine estimates esports is expected to become a multi-billion dollar business this year. The Gaming Knights became an official member of the UCF Sport Clubs Council in 2018.

First-year head coach Greg Lovelady has led the Knights to a 40-20 overall record and captured The American’s regular-season championship. It was the first conference title for the Knights since 2004 when they claimed the ASUN regular-season crown.

“I’m really proud of these guys for all the hard work they’ve put in,” Lovelady said. “For these seniors, some of them who have never been to a regional. One of my big goals as a coach is to make sure that every single player that comes through our program gets this opportunity. These are the things that they’re going to talk about for the rest of their lives.”

After entering The American tournament as the number one seed last weekend, UCF advanced to the semifinal round and recorded its 40th win of 2017 along the way. The last time the Knights won 40 games was also the team’s most recent NCAA Regional appearance, back in 2012 when the Black and Gold came up just short of an NCAA Regional title, falling to Stony Brook in the regional final in Miami.

UCF also brought home several American Athletic Conference awards, including head coach Greg Lovelady as Coach of the Year, senior starter Robby Howell as co-Pitcher of the Year, and newcomer Rylan Thomas as Rookie Position Player of the Year. Five Knights were also named to the all-conference squad.

The Knights have appeared in NCAA Regionals 11 times previously, including seven times in Tallahassee, twice in Gainesville, and once at both Columbia and Miami.

The double-elimination regional tournament is scheduled for June 2-5 at Dick Howser Stadium. The weekend’s winner will then be one of just 16 teams from across the country to advance to the NCAA Super Regional June 9-12. Beginning at 3 p.m. on May 29, fans can click here to purchase tickets via the FSU ticket office.
 

Lewis, who was once recognized as the Rookie of the Week in 2013, is the first Knight to garner the recognition since UCF joined the league last year.

The Bartow, Fla., was bestowed the honor after her unstoppable performance in the Knights’ season-opening win over FAU on Friday. She set a new conference record for points in a game (41), topping UConn’s Breanna Stewart’s standard of 37 points. Her outing also stood out among UCF’s all-time best performances in a series of categories:

In addition to her recognition from the conference, Lewis was also singled out as College Sports Madness’ AAC Player of the Week.

Sophomore quarterback Justin Holman led his team to a season-best night of 506 yards of total offense, completing 16-of-27 pass attempts for 291 yards and a career-high three touchdowns. Meanwhile, UCF’s defense held Tulsa to 201 yards and 3-of-12 on third down conversions.

“I thought the defense went out and played well and made some keys we had to make, and offensively we came up with some big plays passing-wise, which opened up the running game,” UCF head coach George O’Leary said. “I think the coverage teams were good on special teams and (it was an) overall good game. Time of possession was big in our favor, which led to good field position in a lot of situations.”

UCF’s defense helped its offense put its first points on the board when corner Jordan Ozerities intercepted the ball near the end of the first quarter. A facemask penalty put Ů��AV inside the 10-yard line, but the Hurricane defense forced the Knights to call upon Rodrigo Quirarte for a 27-yard field goal with 40 seconds remaining in the quarter.

After Tulsa went three-and-out on its first possession of the second quarter, Breshad Perriman spared the Knights the same fate when he brought down a 48-yard completion to set up his team in the red zone.

Holman kept the drive alive again on third down when he stretched out for the sticks to pick up a first down at the 5-yard line. He then connected with J.J. Worton, who juked two defenders and lunged over the goal line for his 20th career touchdown. With 11:08 to go in the half, UCF led 10-0.

It didn’t take long for Holman to get the crowd out of their seats again. He completed his longest pass of the season, a 77-yarder to Josh Reese – a career-best for the wide receiver – for a 17-0 lead with 7:57 to go.

The Golden Hurricane capitalized off an uncharacteristic muffed punt from Worton that Matt Linscott recovered at the 27-yard line. Keevan Lucas was the Golden Hurricane’s go-to guy. He followed up his 19-yard rush with an acrobatic 8-yard touchdown reception. Originally, his one-handed catch was ruled incomplete, but the call was overturned after review. Tulsa got on the board before the break, but it was the Golden Hurricane’s lone score of the evening.

UCF added to its advantage midway through the third quarter, thanks to Holman’s composure. On the run, Holman completed a 30-yard pass on the run to Justin Tukes. He then launched a perfect spiral to Perriman, who was streaking toward the left corner of the end zone. The 25-yard touchdown gave UCF a 24-7 lead with 9:27 to go in the third.

Dontravious Wilson dominated the Knights’ next scoring drive, churning out seven carries for 50 of the 72 yards required to reach the end zone, including his first-career rushing touchdown. It was 31-7 just before the end of the third quarter.

A pass intended for Connor Floyd ended up in UCF defensive back D.J. Killings’ hands for the defense’s second pick of the night. The defense handled business again on Tulsa’s next drive when Brandon Alexander intercepted a pass in the end zone with 8:31 remaining.

“We had some picks, and we had to have some key plays and got some takeaways,” O’Leary said. “It was a good game and a very solid game by the defense. They tackled well, and offensively I thought we had a pretty good run/pass combination.”

The Golden Hurricane managed to get the ball back after quarterback Nick Patti threw an interception, but the defense forced three-and-out once more, allowing UCF’s offense to ride out the clock for the win.

The Knights are with Cincinnati and Memphis at 4-1.

“Nothing changes. The mentality’s still the same. We’re going to go out and we’re going to bust our butts every game,” Worton said. “It’s a one-game playoff. To get to the goal that we want, is to win every one of them. We’ll look out for the next person that comes up.”

UCF will meet SMU in the final home game of the season Nov. 22 at noon.

For the second year in a row, Tiffany Roberts Sahaydak was named the American’s Coach of the Year. Senior Tatiana Coleman shared Offensive Player of the Year honors with UConn’s Rachel Hill; junior Connie Organ was named Goalkeeper of the Year; and senior Carleigh Williams was lauded as the Defensive Player of the Year.

In addition, the Knights earned a league best eight all-conference team nods. Coleman, Organ and Williams were first-team selections; Ashley Spivey, Jennifer Martin, and Sophie Howard were second-team honorees; and Saga Fredriksson and Hannah DeBose were named to the all-rookie team.

In her second season at the helm of UCF’s program, Roberts Sahaydak guided the Knights to another regular season conference championship. UCF, currently ranked No. 19 in the nation, stands among the top 10 in the country for W-L-T percentage (.842) this year. During the non-conference season, she guided UCF to wins over programs from the Pac-12, ACC, Big 12 and SEC.

Coleman currently sits atop the conference standings for points (33) along with Hill. Earlier this season, she posted a nine-match point scoring streak, tying the school record set in 1995. Her five-game winners this season rank among UCF’s all-time single-season leaders.

Organ owns 12 shutouts this season, good enough for second on UCF’s all-time single-season list. The three-time AAC Goalkeeper of the Week currently ranks sixth in the country for her goals-against average (.423).

Williams earned Defensive Player of the Year roughly one year after suffering a season-ending ACL injury prior to the 2013 AAC Championship. As centerback, she has led her team to 13 shutouts in its 16 wins. Moreover, the Knights have outscored their opponents 27-1 at the UCF Soccer Complex this year.

Spivey (second team) made an immediate impact for the Knights after transferring from Maryland in July. She is the team’s second-leading scorer with eight goals, including the game-winner in UCF’s quarterfinal victory over SMU.

Martin was named to the second team for the second year in a row. She stands as UCF’s third-leading scorer with five goals (three game-winners) and eight assists for 18 points.

Howard was praised for her efforts in the back alongside Williams at centerback. She leads the team in minutes this year and has helped guide the Knights to one of the nation’s best shutout percentages. The German has started in all but one of every match of her three-year career.

As for UCF’s freshmen, Fredriksson has started in 11 of 14 matches as right back for one of the nation’s stingiest defensive units. DeBose, a forward, has started in nine of UCF’s 19 matches this year and has tallied five assists.

UCF meets UConn at 5 p.m. Friday in Tampa at USF’s Corbett Stadium. The winner of Friday’s semifinal will meet either East Carolina or USF in Sunday’s championship at 11 a.m. on ESPNU The victor of the American Championship will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The selection show will air at 4:30 p.m. on ncaa.com on Nov. 10.

The Knights have earned 18 berths to the Big Dance, including an active streak of seven-consecutive appearances.

Based on data released by the NCAA Tuesday, UCF has a Graduation Success Rate (GSR) of 95 percent. That mark ties the Knights with Boston College for fifth-best in NCAA Division I (FBS), trailing only private institutions Notre Dame, Stanford, Duke and Northwestern. UCF’s GSR is 11 points above the national average and is also a school record.

“I’m incredibly proud of our Everyday Champion student-athletes, our coaches and the culture of academic excellence they’ve created here at UCF,” UCF Vice President and Director of Athletics Todd Stansbury said. “This is obviously the result of a lot of hard work and a great support system. When you look at the institutions around us in the rankings, that’s a great neighborhood to live in.”

Thirteen of UCF’s 14 programs (women’s cross country, indoor and outdoor track and field are combined as one by the NCAA) are above the national average. Seven Knights programs – men’s golf, men’s tennis, rowing, women’s golf, women’s soccer, women’s tennis and volleyball – had perfect scores of 100 percent.

Nine UCF squads – football, men’s soccer and the seven mentioned above – were ranked No. 1 in the . The Knights football program ranks No. 10 in the nation and owns the third-best GSR among all FBS public institutions in the nation. Twelve of UCF’s 14 programs came in at 90 percent or better.

“The level of achievement our student-athletes have been able to accomplish academically is truly extraordinary,” said Kimya Massey, UCF Associate Athletics Director for Academic Services. “We are competing at the highest level nationally, both on the field and in the classroom. These latest NCAA metrics bear out that reality. Our student-athletes are graduating at an extremely high rate and also developing skills necessary for success in life, which is always the most important goal. We are extremely proud of this milestone. Kudos to the ASSA staff members, who work extremely hard to assist our student-athletes in their endeavors.”

Within the State of Florida, Ů��AV is tops among all NCAA Division I institutions. Florida State ranks second at 84 percent, while Florida and USF are both at 83 percent. In the American Athletic Conference, UCF’s overall rate is also the top mark.

“This is just another example of the evolution and power of the UCF Athletics program and our move to national prominence, not just in competition but in the classroom as well,” Stansbury said. “We believe that graduation is not the end, but the beginning for our Everyday Champions. Our program will be defined by the success of our graduates.”

The GSR data in this report includes student-athletes who first enrolled in 2007. The NCAA Graduation Success Rate is designed to show the proportion of student-athletes who earn a college degree.