Jan. 16, 2008
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ORLANDO, Fla. (www.ucfathletics.com) - The UCF women's basketball team returns home from a two-game road swing looking for its first Conference USA victory of the season on Thursday when it plays host to Houston. Tip-off in the New UCF Arena is slated for 7 p.m. EST and the game will be carried live on UCFathletics.com with Scott Adams.
Single-game general admission tickets are $5 for adults and $4 for youth and senior citizens, and may be purchased on game day. The UCF spirit team, including the defending national-champion cheerleaders, Knightro and Knight Moves, will be performing at the game. The team will be hosting the March of Dimes organization, UCF pom-poms will be given away to the first 200 fans and one lucky fan will win two tickets to the Conference USA women's basketball tournament which takes place at the New UCF Arena March 6-9.
The Knights (7-9, 0-3 C-USA) are looking to regroup from a pair of losses on the road this past weekend to SMU and Tulsa. UCF is led by freshman forward/center Tia Lewis (Poulan, Ga.), who ranks second in the nation in rebounds per game with 12.3 rpg. She also ranks 16th nationally in field-goal percentage with a .580 clip and is one of only two C-USA players to rank in the league's top 10 in scoring, rebounding and field-goal percentage.
Lewis, who has recorded a conference-best 11 double-doubles on the season, is one of four UCF players who is averaging double-figure points as part of a balanced scoring attack. Freshman forward Emma Cannon (Rochester, N.Y.) and freshman guard Marshay White (Rochester, N.Y.) each average 10.8 ppg, while freshman guard D'Nay Daniels (Atlanta) follows in the scoring column with 10.4 ppg. Cannon, who has seven double-doubles this year, is the team's second-leading rebounder with 9.3 rpg.
"This is a big game for us," UCF head coach Joi Williams said. "We are trying to get our kids to understand that we have to take care of business on our home court, first and foremost. It is also important for us to see improvement. We saw improvement from Southern Miss to SMU and from SMU to Tulsa. We want to see even more improvement tomorrow night and put ourselves in a position to win."
The Knights have been successful this season in large part to their defense and rebounding. UCF leads Conference USA in rebounding margin with a +9.2 advantage and have out-rebounded 11 opponents this year. Additionally, the Knights have held four of their last five opponents to 45-percent shooting or less.
"It is important for us to keep rebounding well," Williams said. "We have talked all year about how we felt like rebounding was probably going to be something that would identify our team. Defensive rebounding is a big part of the game and we've got to do that well every night. We've been pretty consistent with our rebounding. The thing we need to get better at is taking care of the ball, but I've been really proud of our effort on the boards, especially the offensive boards. We've been really aggressive, and we hope to do that again tomorrow night."
Thursday's game marks the third meeting all-time between the Knights and the Cougars with the all-time series tied at 1-1. Houston picked up a 64-50 win against UCF in the first meeting between the two teams on Jan. 6, 2006 before the Knights won 78-73 last season in Orlando.
The Cougars are 8-9 on the season and 2-1 in C-USA action. Houston has won three of its last four games, including a 71-66 win against cross-town rival Rice on Sunday.
The Cougars are led by a pair of All-America selections in guards Tye Jackson and Twiggy McIntyre. McIntyre, a transfer from Kansas State, leads the team and ranks fourth in the league in scoring with 14.7 ppg, while Jackson, who last season scored 43 points in a single game against Marshall, follows with 12.5 ppg. Freshman forward Courtney Taylor leads the team in rebounding with 8.0 ppg.
Houston is under the direction of interim head coach Danny Hughes. Hughes took over just prior to the season as longtime head coach Joe Curl suffered a heart attack after returning from a recruiting trip on Oct. 27. Curl, who is the fourth-winningest coach among active Conference USA head coaches, underwent successful double-bypass surgery and is out of basketball indefinitely.
For the latest news and information on the Knights, tickets or apparel log on to www.ucfathletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. Also check out UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.
Pre-Game Quotes - UCF Head Coach Joi Williams
"This is a big game for us. We are trying to get our kids to understand that we have to take care of business on our home court, first and foremost. It is also important for us to see improvement. We saw improvement from Southern Miss to SMU and from SMU to Tulsa. We want to see even more improvement tomorrow night and put ourselves in a position to win."
On preparing to face Houston's All-America guard candidates Tye Jackson and Twiggy McIntyre...
"That is going to be tough to combat. We have got to try to limit their touches, which is obviously easier said than done. We have a lot of respect for their backcourt of McIntyre and Jackson, two very, very good players. But, they have a lot of other kids who are good too, so we are going to have to play all-around solid defense and we have to really defend penetration well. I think those are going to be two big keys to the game."
On the UCF's rebounding prowess that leads Conference USA in rebound margin...
"It is important for us to keep rebounding well. We have talked all year about how we felt like rebounding was probably going to be something that would identify our team. Defensive rebounding is a big part of the game and we've got to do that well every night. We've been pretty consistent with our rebounding. The thing we need to get better at is taking care of the ball, but I've been really proud of our effort on the boards, especially the offensive boards. We've been really aggressive, and we hope to do that again tomorrow night."
On what she learned from the team's road trip at SMU and Tulsa...
"It was a first for our team in terms of conference road games. Having this many young players, there are so many firsts this year and so many new experiences. It was a great time and a great bonding experience. We didn't have a lot of time to prepare, and I was proud of my team for how resilient they were on Sunday. They could have come out and hung their heads because of how we got beat on Friday night, but they came back strong. Now, we have to learn that the second half is just as important as the first half, especially the first four minutes of the second half."
On UCF's Tia Lewis ranking second in the nation in rebounds per game...
"Tia's play this year has been huge. I am so proud of her. Coming from a background, where she didn't really come in with a whole lot of fundamentals, she is a kid that has really worked hard. She has gone above and beyond what she needs to do. She does exactly what we ask her to do, and tries to get better everyday. Tia is somebody who you can see improvement in every day in practice and she has really become a student of the game. I'm proud of her and glad that her hard work is paying off."