UCF 63, Tulsa 53

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) Lavell Payne scores 20 points and pulls down 10 rebounds to help Central Florida hold off a furious 2nd-half Tulsa rally and win 63-53 Saturday.<br/> <br/>Central Florida blew an 11-point

Sunday, February 4th 2007, 2:53 pm

By: News On 6

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) Lavell Payne scores 20 points and pulls down 10 rebounds to help Central Florida hold off a furious 2nd-half Tulsa rally and win 63-53 Saturday.

Central Florida blew an 11-point 2nd-half lead but avoided its second straight home loss by outscoring Tulsa 7-1 down the stretch.

Josh Pepper's conventional 3-point play doubled the Golden Knights' lead to 6-points with 2:58 remaining, propelling Central Florida to victory.

Charles Ramsdell led Tulsa with 14 points. Ray Reese had 13 points and 6 rebounds for the Golden Hurricane, who shot only 30 percent from the floor.

TU falls to 14-7 overall and 4-4 in Conference USA, while Central Florida now is 16-6 and 5-3.