BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — Andrej Jakimovski scored 15 points and Julian Hammond III scored 11 points and Colorado earned its first Big 12 Conference win in almost 14 years beating UCF 76-63 on Saturday.
Prior to Saturday, Colorado's last win in the Big 12 before leaving for the Pac 12 was on March 10, 2011 when the Buffaloes beat Kansas State in the Big 12 Tournament.
Sebastian Rancik added 10 points for Colorado (10-15, 1-13) who outrebounded UCF (13-12, 4-10) 52-29 and grabbed 16 offensive rebounds that led to 17 points. The Buffs ended a 13-game losing streak to start their return to the conference.
Keyshawn Hall scored 19 points, Darius Johnson scored 15 points and reserve Nils Machowski 13 for UCF (13-12, 4-10).
Sebastian Rancik's layup with 8:07 remaining before halftime gave Colorado a 25-18 and the deficit appeared to be just what the Knights needed.
Machowski threw down a dunk, buried a 3-pointer and made a layup at the end of a 13-2 run that lasted four minutes and put UCF ahead 31-27 with 2:49 left before the break.
But Colorado made a run and outscored the Knights 11-5 in the last two-and-a-half minutes and Bangot Dak's layup as time expired put Colorado up 38-36 at the break.
Boston Celtics and NBA Champion Derrick White was on hand for the unveiling of his jersey on Colorado’s Wall of Honor. The ceremony took place during the first media timeout with just under 16 minutes left before halftime.
UCF heads to Stillwater, Oklahoma to face Oklahoma State on Wednesday. Colorado travels to play 10th-ranked Iowa State on Tuesday.
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