Jan. 19, 2005
ORLANDO, Fla. -
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
The UCF women's basketball team will look to extend their win streak to five games when they host Mercer Thursday, January 20 at 5:00 p.m. in game one of a double-header with the men's basketball team. The Golden Knights will enter the game with a 7-6 mark on the season and a 5-1 record in the Atlantic Sun, while the Bears come in with a 5-8 overall mark and a 3-3 record in the A-Sun.
UCF is led by senior Ali Roberts, who is averaging 11.2 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. Junior Shelby Weber leads the team in rebounds with 6.2 boards per game, while sophomore Lashaunda Slade leads in assists with 51.
UCF is currently ranked second in the Atlantic Sun standings behind Lipscomb who is 6-1 in conference play. In the A-Sun statistics, the Golden Knights rank first in scoring defense (58.1 per game), blocked shots (5.69 per game), defensive rebounds (27.15 per game), scoring margin (+0.9) and field goal percent defense (.361) and second in rebounding offense (37.5 per game) and rebounding margin (+3.6).
Individually, Roberts ranks 14th in scoring with 11.2 per game, while Celeste Hudson is 20th with 10.2 per game. Francine Houston is ranked 22nd in scoring with 10.2 points per game. Slade is fourth in the A-Sun with 3.92 assists per game. Hudson is also ranked third in the conference in steals with 2.25 per game. In the blocked shots category, Roberts is ranked second with 2.23 per game, while Weber is fifth with 1.85 and Takira Allen is eighth with 0.92.
Last time out, UCF defeated Gardner-Webb 69-65 with Hudson and Houston leading UCF in points with 17 apiece. Hudson also grabbed five boards to lead the Knights in rebounds. Roberts had a team-high four blocks against the Lady Bulldogs.
Jessica Miller, who is averaging 12.5 points per game and 7.8 rebounds per game, leads Mercer. Sarah Russell is second on the team in points with 9.5 per game, while Tanya Kessenich is second in rebounds with 7.7 boards per game.
The Bears are currently in sixth place in the Atlantic Sun standings. Statistically, Mercer ranks second in blocked shots (4.23 per game), sixth in rebounding margin (+0.9), seventh in scoring margin (-4.9), field goal percent defense (.401) and rebounding defense (39.5 per game) and eighth in scoring defense (65.9 per game) and defensive rebounds (25.31 per game).
Individually, Miller ranks eighth in scoring, while Russell is 26th and Rosanna Davis is 28th in scoring. Davis is also fourth in field goal percentage with .522. Sally Skeldon ranks third in the A-Sun in assists with 4.00 per game. Miller also ranks second in steals with 2.62 per game.
Last time out, Mercer fell to Lipscomb 51-56. Davis and Kessenich led the Bears with 12 points apiece, while Miller led the team in rebounds with eight.
This will be the 40th time that UCF and Mercer have met on the basketball court with the Golden Knights leading the series 22-17. The last time that the Knights and the Bears met was on March 11, 2004 in the second round of the Atlantic Sun Tournament with UCF defeating Mercer 73-58.
Tickets are still available for Thursday night's game. Adults are $5. Youth age 17 and under and seniors age 55 and older pay $3. Children under five and UCF students with a valid UCF student I.D. are admitted free. Tickets for all Golden Knights women's basketball games are available at the door and by calling (407) UCF-GOLD.