MEMPHIS, Tenn. - No. 5-seeded Memphis rode the momentum of its first round win and a loud crowd at FedExForum to win its 2019 Air Force Reserve American Athletic Conference quarterfinal matchup against No. 4 UCF, 79-55.
The Tigers will now play their third game in three days when they take on No. seede1 d and No. 11/10 nationally-ranked Houston tomorrow at 3 p.m. ET/2 p.m. CT on ESPN2.
Memphis (21-12) roared out to a 10-point halftime lead, 37-27, and kept it going in the second with 42 points.
The Tigers held UCF (23-8) to 35.8-percent shooting for the game and forced the Knights into 16 turnovers which resulted in 17 points.
With the win, Memphis improves to 16-2 at FedExForum this season and have now won eight of their past 10 games.
Memphis' Isaiah Maurice had a career-high 21 points off the bench for the Tigers. He posted an impressive shooting line as he knocked down 8-of-11 shots with three 3-pointers and went 2-of-2 from the line. He rounded out his line with three rebounds, three assists and a block.
Kyvon Davenport went for a double-double with 16 points and a game-high 11 rebounds for Memphis. His classmate Jeremiah Martin added 13 points as he went 11-of-12 from the line.
Tacko Fall had the 24th double-double of his career with 12 points, 10 rebounds and added four blocks for UCF.
The Knights had won four of their past five games and ranked second in the conference in field goal percentage defense but Memphis was clicking on all cylinders for the second-straight American Athletic Conference Championship game.