Nov. 8, 2005
ORLANDO - The UCF men's and women's basketball teams will both be in action on Wednesday evening, playing exhibition games at UCF Arena. Head coach Gail Striegler's women's team will face the Miami Suns at 5 p.m. and head coach Kirk Speraw's men's squad will host Barry at 7:30 p.m.
Admission to both contests is free. Fans should call (407) UCF-GOLD to purchase season tickets or for more information.
The women's team returns six letterwinners, including four seniors, from the 2004-05 squad that went 19-10 overall. The Golden Knights are led by senior guard Celeste Hudson, who in addition to garnering Defensive Player of the Year honors in the Atlantic Sun last season, is tops among returning UCF players, having averaged 11.2 points per game in 2004-05.
The Miami Suns are a professional team featuring former college players that tours the southeast, taking on some of the region's top collegiate basketball programs.
The men's team returns seven letterwinners from last season's 24-9 squad that made its second consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament. Junior forward Josh Peppers is the Golden Knights' leading returning scorer after averaging 13.1 points per game last season. In addition to 5.6 boards a contest, senior forward Anthony Williams averaged 11 points and shot 54.2 percent from the field in 2004-05.
Barry is a Division II team based out of Miami Shores. The Buccaneers are a member of the Sunshine State Conference.
Both UCF squads are entering their first campaign in Conference USA and open the regular season on Nov. 18. Striegler's team will face Florida A&M at 5:30 p.m. as part of the Golden Knights Classic. The men's team will host cross-town rival Rollins at 8 p.m.