Box Score ORLANDO, Fla.- Savannah State held Central Florida without a field goal the final three minutes of the game but the Knights made nine of 11 free throw attempts down the stretch in a 53-50 win over Savannah State in the UCF Arena before a crowd of 3,894.

The game featured seven ties and 11 lead changes.

The Knights led by as many as 18 points in the second half but SSU battled back to take a 41-40 lead with 5:35 left with a 23-4 run.

A layup by UCF's Isaiah Sykes gave the Knights a one point lead but Preston Blackman buried a 3-pointer to put SSU ahead 44-42 with 4:41 remaining.

The game would be tied at 44, 46, 48 and 50 but free throws by Tristan Spurlock and Kasey Wilson gave UCF the three point edge that proved to be the difference.

Blackman missed a shot at the buzzer from half-court that would have tied the game.

The loss drops Savannah State to 3-2.

UCF made 23 of 35 free throw attempts in the contest while the Tigers were 5 of 8.

Rashad Hasan had 17 points for Savannah State. Cedric Smith added 12 points and 7 rebounds while Blackman chipped in 11 points.

With the game tied at six Hassan and Stephen Wilson both made layups to put SSU ahead 10-6 with 14:09 on the clock.

Central Florida responded by scoring seven straight points during a 15-2 run to go ahead 25-12 with 7:17 left until intermission.

A dunk by Khiry White pulled SSU within 26-18 but the Knights ended the half with five unanswered points to take a 31-18 lead into the half.

A layup and a free throw by Spurlock gave UCF a 18 point cushion early in the second period but Savannah State responded with a 15-0 run to get within 36-33 with 9:52 remaining.

UCF (3-0) was led by Keith Clanton who had 17 points and 12 rebounds.

For the game, SSU shot 40.4 percent from the floor while the Knights shot 32.6 percent. UCF had 36 rebounds while Savannah State had 33.