Cincinnati @ Central Florida preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 21, 2019 ) Central Florida 55, Cincinnati 60

Central Florida took down the top team in the American Athletic Conference -- and the team with the best record in the nation -- on Saturday as the Knights upended then-No. 8 Houston 69-64. Now UCF returns home looking to repeat that success on Thursday when it faces No. 19 Cincinnati, which benefited from that big Knights win as the Bearcats moved into a tie with Houston atop the conference after defeating Memphis 71-69.

"You want to be in meaningful games," UCF head coach Johnny Dawkins told reporters after the upset of Houston. "People talk about the stretch right now that we have, but that's good for us. It's galvanizing us even more. Guys are understanding what it takes to win in these types of environments and that's going to continue to help us get better." The Knights have been making noise all season and they sit in third place in the American, but their road victory at Houston, which came in with the longest home winning streak in the nation (33 games), could be the one that catapults them into the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 15 years. The Knights have won three in a row, but their last loss came against these Bearcats two weeks ago (60-55), as Cincinnati retained its hold on this rivalry with 11 wins in the 12 all-time meetings, although UCF's lone victory (53-49) came over a ranked Bearcats squad in 2017. The Bearcats are aiming for back-to-back league championships for the first time since 2001 and 2002 in Conference USA and it could come down to the regular-season finale on Sunday at home against Houston.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, ESPN2

ABOUT CINCINNATI (25-4, 14-2 American): The Bearcats continue to win the tight ones, with their last four games decided by five points or less, including the win over UCF, and 11 overall for the year. Guard Jarron Cumberland remains one of the top players in the nation as he comes off a 26-point performance against Memphis, giving him 14 20-point games this season, although the Knights held him to 11 points in the first meeting. Cumberland (41.1) is second in the conference in 3-point shooting percentage to teammate Justin Jenifer (43.8), who has hit 27 of his last 60 attempts from deep over his last 11 games.

ABOUT UCF (22-6, 12-4): Star guards B.J. Taylor and Aubrey Dawkins each scored 11 points against Houston, but big men Collin Smith and Tacko Fall took charge, combining for 34 points and 17 rebounds, as Smith totaled a season-high 21 points and seven boards while Fall produced his fifth double-double (13 points, 10 rebounds) of the season. Cincinnati contained Fall in the first meeting, limiting the 7-6 center to just seven points and four rebounds, but Dawkins was the high scorer with 18 points, 15 in the second half. This is the final home game for Fall and Taylor, who has led UCF in scoring the last three seasons and now has a team-high 16.3 points per game to rank ninth in the conference.

TIP-INS

1. With the win over Houston, UCF tied the team record (2006-07 and 2003-04) for regular-season wins (22) in Division I play.

2. The Bearcats need just one more victory to give them at least 26 wins for the sixth time in the last nine seasons.

3. The Knights are averaging only 73.6 points per game, but they top the league in field-goal percentage (47.2).

PREDICTION: UCF 76, Cincinnati 73