Jan. 27, 2006
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MEMPHIS - The UCF men's basketball team travels to third-ranked Memphis on Saturday for a Conference USA showdown with the Tigers. Tip-off at the FedEx Forum is set for 1 p.m. Eastern.
The Golden Knights (9-8, 3-1 C-USA) have won three-consecutive league contests and will face a tough test against one of the nation's elite teams. Memphis is 18-2 on the year and 4-0 in league play.
The contest will be broadcast nationally on CSTV. Carter Blackburn will handle the play-by-play and former Villanova and Massachusetts head coach Steve Lappas will serve as the color commentator.
UCF will be facing a team ranked in the top five for the first time since the Golden Knights played No. 2 Florida in Jacksonville on Dec. 4, 2003.
The Golden Knights have one of the top defenses in Conference USA. In league contests, opponents are averaging just 58 points against UCF. UCF has limited its last two opponents to below 60 points. The team's 61.2 scoring defense mark ranks 41st nationally.
UCF-Memphis will be aired live on the UCF ISP Sports Network and its flagship station, WQTM - 740 THE TEAM. Marc Daniels will have the call from courtside. Audio of the contest is also available on www.UCFathletics.com as part of the "Golden Knights All-Access" package.
UCF LAST TIME OUT Justin Rose scored 18 points to lift UCF past host East Carolina on Wednesday, 64-59. The Golden Knights shot 60.9 percent from the floor in the first half and 46.5 percent for the game. Anthony Williams scored 11 of his 14 points in the opening half.
ABOUT MEMPHIS The Tigers held off visiting UAB, 73-66, on Thursday to improve to 11-1 at home this season. Memphis dominated the boards, finishing with a 54-34 rebounding edge. Darius Washington posted 26 points and was one of four Tigers to finish with double-figures in scoring. Rodney Carney had 19 points and Joey Dorsey recorded 12 points, 16 rebounds and four blocks.
Memphis has won seven-consecutive contests. Carney, who is second in the league in scoring at 17.8 points per game, is one of the best offensive players in the nation. Washington (14.1 points per game) is considered to be one of the elite point guards in the country. Rookie Shawne Williams is averaging 13.5 points and 6.7 boards per contest and is a candidate for C-USA Freshman of the Year honors. Dorsey leads the team inside where, he is averaging 8.3 rebounds and 2.4 blocks an outing. The Tigers are averaging 82.2 points a game, good for eighth nationally.
SERIES HISTORY Memphis leads the all-time series, 3-0, but the teams have not met since Nov. 27, 1976 when the Tigers posted an 84-53 victory at home. All three series meetings have been played in Memphis.
HOMECOMING FOR PEPPERS The contest against the Tigers will serve as a homecoming for Memphis native Josh Peppers. Peppers attended Whitehaven High School in Memphis where he was a two-time all-metro selection. The junior forward is familiar with the Tiger program as he is the first cousin of former Memphis star Cedric Henderson. Henderson played for the Tigers from 1993-97 and was a second-round pick of the Cleveland Cavaliers.
UCF-MEMPHIS CONNECTIONS UCF associate head coach Tom Schuberth served as an assistant coach at Memphis from 1992-97 under Larry Finch. Schuberth helped the Tigers recruit Lorenzen Wright, a McDonald's High School All-America selection, who went on to win national freshman of the year honors in 1996. With Schuberth on the staff, Memphis claimed the 1995 Midwest Conference title and advanced to the Sweet 16 at the NCAA Tournament.
1996 REWIND Kirk Speraw has never coached against Memphis, but he has squared off against John Calipari. UCF faced top-seed Massachusetts in the first round of the 1996 NCAA Tournament in Providence. The Golden Knights trailed 43-39 at halftime, but Massachusetts used a 12-0 run at the start of the second half to pull away. The Minutemen, led by Marcus Camby, would go on to advance to the Final Four.
WELCOME TO CONFERENCE USA Anthony Williams is enjoying the Golden Knights' first season in Conference USA. In three league games, the senior forward is averaging 17.3 points and 6.8 rebounds. Williams is shooting 56.9 percent overall and is averaging 2.3 blocks a contest. In UCF's first C-USA road game at Houston on Jan. 14, he recorded a season-high 25 points on 10-of-14 shooting and also totaled nine rebounds and five blocks.
UCF AGAINST NATIONALLY RANKED TEAMS UCF will be looking for the second win in program history against a ranked opponent. On Dec. 12, 2002, the Golden Knights topped No. 25 College of Charleston, 82-64, in Orlando. Since the start of the 2001-02 season, UCF is 1-5 versus ranked foes.
VOLUNTEER STATE SUCCESS Over the last two years, UCF is 9-1 in games play in Tennessee. All of the contests have been played in Nashville (versus Belmont and Lipscomb and at the Atlantic Sun Tournament).
A HISTORY LESSON UCF's three Conference USA victories this season have come against teams with impressive legacies. Houston has participated in 18 NCAA Tournaments and has made four trips to the Final Four. Tulsa boasts 14 NCAA Tournament appearances, three trips to the Sweet 16 and a pair of NIT titles. East Carolina has participated in a pair of NCAA Tournaments.
BIG ON THE BOARDS Despite standing just 6-foot-3, Justin Rose is averaging a team-high 6.4 rebounds per game - good for eighth in Conference USA. He is the only guard in the top-10. Rose grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds at Houston on Jan. 14. The 14 boards were the most by a Golden Knight since Will Bakanowsky registered 14 versus Gardner-Webb on Dec. 2, 2004.
THIS DATE IN UCF HISTORY On Jan. 28, 2004, Marcus Avant and Roberto Morentin both recorded double-doubles to help host UCF to a 75-66 win over Florida Atlantic. Morentin posted 24 points and 10 boards and Avant had 10 points and 10 rebounds in the win.
UP NEXT The Golden Knights return home to host UAB on Feb. 4 at 3 p.m. The contest will be broadcast on CSTV and will serve as the first nationally televised home game in school history... The squads will be meeting for the first time... UCF associate head coach Tom Schuberth served as an assistant coach with the Blazers during the 2001-02 season under Murry Bartow.