Clark and Grovey Score in Double Figures in 75-74 Loss to UCF

Saturday, January 30

Orlando, Fla.

12:00 pm

Tulsa

7-15, 4-7

UCF

5-16, 2-8

Tulsa

UCF

Clark and Grovey Score in Double Figures in 75-74 Loss to UCF

1/30/2016 2:08:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

By: Stephanie Hall

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Tulsa dropped a 75-74 decision on a late three-point basket that gave UCF the one-point win on Saturday afternoon at CFE Arena in Orlando, Fla. TU fell to 7-15 on the season and 4-7 in American Athletic Conference play, while the Knights moved to 5-16 overall and 2-8 in the league.

Senior Ashley Clark scored a team-best 32 points, while classmate Kelsee Grovey added 17 points. Clark, Ashley Hughes and Tyjae' Scales all had five rebounds, while Clark and Hughes each had three assists, and Grovey and Teanna Reid both had two steals.

"I give a lot of credit to our kids," Head Coach Matilda Mossman said. "They showed a lot of grit. UCF shot the ball extremely well the entire night and we just couldn't seem to get stops, until the fourth quarter. In the fourth quarter we put some things together, got some stops and made some big rebounds, but we didn't get the last one as they scored the three."

"Ashley Clark played hard the entire game," Mossman added. "She was incredible, especially in the first half, and then Kelsee started helping her in the second half. They made plays and they competed."

The Knights edged ahead throughout the second half, taking a 10-point lead with 6:58 on the clock and then a 13-point advantage at the 9:01 mark in the final frame. TU then made a late push, outscoring UCF, 13-7, to close out the game, but it was too late.

Tulsa started to chip away at the deficit and pulled to within five, 66-61, with 5:23 left to play. A Grovey three-pointer with 2:22 on the clock and Tulsa was within three (72-69) and a layup by Clark pulled TU to within one, 72-71, at the 2:09 mark. A pair of free throws by Clark at the 1:37 mark and the Hurricane took their first lead of the contest (73-72). One more free throw by Clark gave Tulsa a 74-72 advantage with 16.3 seconds to play, but a three-point basket by Zykira Lewis with 4.7 seconds to play put the Knights ahead by one for the final score.

Tulsa shot 40-percent from the field, including 33-percent from three-point range, and 68-percent from the free throw line, while UCF shot 50-percent from the field, including 50-percent from behind the arc, and 70-percent from the charity stripe during the game.

The Knights were led by Lewis with 21 points, while Aliyah Gregory added 14, Nyala Shuler had 11 and Joslyn Massey had 10. Fifi Ndour had 11 rebounds and Shuler had 10.

Tulsa had a 38-34 edge in points in the paint and a 16-6 lead in points off turnovers, while UCF had a 17-8 lead in points off the bench and a 17-0 lead in fast break points.

UCF had a 43 rebounds, 18 assists, seven blocks and five steals, compared to TU's 28 rebounds, 11 assists, one block and eight steals.

UCF jumped out to a 9-2 lead with 6:50 on the clock, but a pair of jumpers and a pair of free throws by Clark and Tulsa pulled to within three, 11-8, at the 4:12 mark. Clark went on to score another basket to post TU's first 10 points of the contest, but the Golden Hurricane trailed at the end of the first period, 18-14. In the first frame, TU shot just 25-percent while the Knights hit 53-percent of their attempts.

In the second quarter, Tulsa played catch up, outscoring the Knights, 22-21, to go into the locker room down three, 39-36. Clark had 15 of TU's points at the break, including a perfect 4-of-4 from the charity stripe.

Tulsa shot 35-percent from the field, including 39-percent from behind the arc, and hit 8-of-12 free throw attempts, while UCF shot 58-percent from the field, including 50-percent from three-point range, and were 1-of-1 from the charity stripe in the first half.

Tulsa will return to action on Wednesday, February 3 against East Carolina. Game time is set for 6:00 pm Central in Greenville, N.C., and the contest can be viewed live on ESPN3.com.