The UCF Knights are competing for a championship! While it may not be the NCAA basketball championship, the Knights, who were invited to compete in the College Basketball Crown Tournament, have advanced to the Championship after beating Villanova 104-98 in overtime.
After a rough second season in the Big 12 where things got off to a hot start and dropped off fast in conference play, the Knights are set to lose a lot of players after the season ends, but luckily the season isn't over yet. With players like Darius Johnson still on the squad, clearly anything is possible, especially with the game he had against Villanova.
PLAYING FOR THE 👑‼️ pic.twitter.com/jQCFBuNs3o
— UCF Men’s Hoops 🌴 (@UCF_MBB) April 5, 2025
Darius Johnson goes off for the Knights to lead UCF to College Basketball Crown Championship
Darius Johnson will forever go down in the UCF basketball history books, especially for spending all four years in Orlando, something that isn't seen often anymore in this day and age of college sports. Even through tough seasons and struggles to move to a new conference, Johnson stuck around with head coach Johnny Dawkins and now it is all paying off.
After not making the NCAA Tournament, UCF accepted the invitation to play in the College Basketball Crown Tournament in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Knights took down Oregon State with a one-point victory in the first round, took care of business against Cincinnati in the Semifinal, and have now taken down Villanova in the Quarterfinal to advance to the Championship.
Johnson was integral in the overtime win for the Knights as the senior went off for 42 points, seven assists, and five rebounds. Clearly the leading scorer of the day, Johnson will now have one more game in a UCF uniform before he officially closes the books on his incredible college career.
Any team that faces UCF knows to circle Johnson's name on the stat sheet, but even with defense dialing in on him, Johnson finds ways to create space but also get others involved to help himself. USTA transfer Jordan Ivy-Curry was the Knights' second leading scorer with 18 points as the senior also gets one more chance on the court in his college basketball career.
UCF will have one more game this season as they are now set to take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers in the College Basketball Crown Championship on Sunday, April 6 at 5:30 p.m. EST on FOX. UCF football coach Scott Frost has ties to Nebraska, with it being his Alma Mater and the school he left the Knights for after his first stint at UCF before returning this season.