March 4, 2008
ORLANDO, Fla. (www.ucfathletics.com) - During its trip to Memphis, Tenn., to play the Memphis Lady Tigers, the UCF women's basketball team had the opportunity to visit the National Civil Rights Museum, located at the Lorriane Motel, where civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was shot on April 4, 1968.
The Knights had the opportunity to tour the museum, which gives guests an inside look into the room in which King was shot and the rooming house from which assassin James Earl Ray carried out the murder.
The motel remained open until 1982, when it was foreclosed. At that time, a group of prominent Memphians, concerned about the future of the historic site, formed the Martin Luther King Memorial Foundation to save the Lorraine.
The museum featured numerous exhibits detailing the history of the civil rights movement and key episodes in the American civil rights movement.
In February 2001, the Museum added an $11 million expansion project that added 12,800 square feet of exhibition space and connects the main part of the museum to the Main Street Rooming House, where Ray allegedly fired the fatal shot resulting in the death of King.
UCF, seeded 12th, return to action on Thursday when they play host to fifth-seeded Southern Miss in the opening round of the Conference USA women's basketball tournament. Tip-off in the New UCF Arena is slated for 5:30 p.m. and the game will be carried live on UCFAthletics.com with Scott Adams.
UCF will play host to the 2008 Conference USA Women's Basketball Tournament, March 6-9, at the new UCF Arena. Single-game and session ticket packages are now available. Call the UCFAA Ticket Sales Office at 407-823-1000. 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.
--UCFAA--