May 16, 2008
ORLANDO, Fla. (www.ucfathletics.com) - The UCF men's basketball program set several attendance records in 2007-08 during the Knights' inaugural campaign at the new UCF Arena. On Friday, head coach Kirk Speraw and the Knights learned from the NCAA that UCF posted the fifth-largest average attendance increase in the nation.
UCF averaged a school-record 4,891 fans per contest this past season. In 2006-07, an average of 2,706 spectators attended the program's games at the old UCF Arena. The increase of 2,185 fans per game placed the Knights in the top-five nationally.
Thirty-three Division I teams saw an increase in attendance from the previous year of more than 1,000 fans per home game. UCF was one of just five programs in the country with increases of 2,000 or more.
Southern Cal had the greatest average attendance increase (2,670), followed by Georgetown (2,514). Davidson ranked third at 2,493 and fellow Conference USA squad Memphis (2,221) finished just ahead of UCF in fourth.
A new UCF single-season record for attendance was established during the year as 78,253 fans attended 16 home contests. Ten of the top-12 crowds in school history were recorded during the campaign. A UCF record 7,097 fans were on hand on Jan. 12 as the Knights hosted Tulsa in the inaugural C-USA game at the new facility.
The Knights were the only Florida program listed in the top 20 in per game attendance increase. UCF's average attendance ranked fourth among the 13 Division I programs in Florida. The Knights averaged more spectators than several in-state schools, including Miami of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
UCF won 12 home contests in 2007-08. In only their third season in C-USA, the Knights finished fourth in the 12-team league. In the last six seasons, UCF has claimed 122 victories, which ranks 49th nationally.
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