B.J. Taylor scores, No. 25 UCF beats No. 19 Cincinnati 58-55

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — B.J. Taylor scored 22 points and No. 25 UCF held off No. 19 Cincinnati 58-55 on Thursday night.

Tacko Fall added 10 points and six rebounds for the Knights (23-6, 13-4 American Athletic). They held Cincinnati to 37.1 percent shooting and had a 39-33 rebounding edge.

Trevon Scott had 20 points on 9-of-15 shooting and added nine rebounds for the Bearcats (25-5, 14-3). Jarron Cumberland added 10 points and five assists.

Taylor broke a tie with two free throws with 1:16 left and made it 57-53 with a layup with 17 seconds to go. Cumberland cut it to two with a layup with 10 seconds left, and Chad Brown completed the scoring for UCF with a free throw with 9 seconds to go.

Cumberland and Can Broome missed 3-point attempts for the Bearcats in the final seconds.

CUMBERLAND STRUGGLES

Cumberland didn’t score his first basket until 7:28 left in the first half. The Bearcats’ leading scorer at 18.6 points per game, he was 5 for-18 from the field.

BIG PICTURE

Cincinnati: The Bearcats couldn’t overcome their shooting problems. They were 6 of 18 from 3 -point range.

UCF: The victory gave the Knights two victories over Top 25 teams in a season for the first time.

UP NEXT

Cincinnati: Hosts No. 12 Houston on Sunday

UCF: At Temple on Saturday.