After his team bounced back from a 16-point deficit in the first half to secure a 65-60 win over No. 3 Kansas on Wednesday, UCF coach Johnny Dawkins couldn't get through the crowd. With every step he took, there were handshakes and high fives to congratulate him on his team snapping an eight-game losing streak against ranked teams.
But another historic moment also unfolded in that win: For just the fourth time in college basketball history and the first time in 20 years, the top three teams in the Associated Press poll have all lost to unranked opponents in a two-day span, according to ESPN Stats & Information.
The Jayhawks' loss Wednesday followed Purdue's 88-72 loss at Nebraska and Houston's 57-53 loss at Iowa State, both of which unfolded Tuesday. Tennessee, ranked No. 5, also lost 77-72 at Mississippi State on Wednesday.
This is the first time in the history of the Associated Press poll that four top-five teams have lost to unranked teams in a two-day span, per ESPN Stats & Info.
"We kept believing, and our guys kept fighting," Dawkins said. "We got off to a really good start in the game. They have a championship pedigree. A championship program. Great coach. And I feel like guys just kept fighting. We knew we couldn't get it all back in one possession. So what we wanted to do was chip away, chip away. And I thought we did that by halftime, and we carried that momentum into the second half."
With 3:45 to play in the first half, Kansas took a 35-19 lead on Dajuan Harris Jr.'s layup. Although the Jayhawks had taken control of the game early, Dawkins switched to a zone look in the second half, which seemed to frustrate the Jayhawks. In the second half, Kansas connected on just 32% of its field goal attempts and finished 3-for-11 from the 3-point line.
"I thought it was important for us to kind of mix it up," Dawkins said. "They have outstanding players. Those guys are capable of making plays at any time, so we just wanted to keep them off balance as best we could. And tonight it worked. It's one of those things where, you don't know, tomorrow it may not work, but tonight it worked for us. I'm happy for our guys. I thought our effort was great and I'm very proud of what they accomplished."
The Knights joined Cincinnati, Houston and BYU as additions to the Big 12 this season. Next year, Arizona, Arizona State, Utah and Colorado will arrive. But the enhanced depth of the Big 12, the top conference in America for the bulk of the past decade, is already apparent.
Big plays by Ibrahima Diallo (13 points, five rebounds, three assists, one block), Jaylin Sellers (18 points) and Darius Johnson (17 points) helped UCF capture a key win in just its second Big 12 game. The sellout crowd played a significant role, too. All 10,000 seats at Addition Financial Arena were filled for the matchup against Kansas.
Dawkins said the buzz in the arena created the perfect conditions for the third upset of a top-three men's college basketball team in less than 48 hours. It also was just the second win for UCF over a top-five team. The program's other top-five victory occurred against then-No. 4 UConn on Nov. 25, 2011.
"It was electric," Dawkins said about the crowd. "The energy and enthusiasm in the building is why we won. That's what we've talked about. We have to do this together. Our community came out and they rallied behind us."