Sept. 12, 2008
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ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - A contest at the new UCF Arena with national runner-up Memphis and 12 total games against squads that participated in the postseason a year ago highlight the UCF men's basketball team's 2008-09 schedule, which head coach Kirk Speraw announced Friday. The Knights will play 16 regular-season contests at home, including eight Conference USA matchups.
The schedule features 10 contests against teams that won at least 20 games last season and six of those opponents claimed 24 or more victories. The Knights, who return one of the nation's premier players in senior guard Jermaine Taylor (Tavares, Fla.), have seven true freshmen on their roster.
"We open the season with games against very difficult opponents. We have a young team that will face some tests immediately," Speraw said. "The tough non-conference schedule will really prepare our guys for the Conference USA schedule. It seems like every team in the league has gotten better and every game will be competitive."
UCF's C-USA contest with Memphis, a squad that won 38 games last season and came up just short against Kansas in the national title game, is set for Jan. 10 in Orlando. In addition to the Tigers, UCF will also host Southern Miss, Marshall, SMU, Houston, Tulsa, Rice and East Carolina in league play.
Speraw's team will play its first C-USA road game of the season at UAB on Jan. 13 and will also face Rice, Tulane, East Carolina, Houston, Marshall and Tulsa away from home.
After opening the campaign at home on Nov. 16 against North Carolina A&T, the Knights will play five-consecutive games away from Orlando. The stretch begins on Nov. 18 at Valparaiso and continues at New Mexico (Nov. 22) and Ole Miss (Nov. 26). All three squads participated in the 2008 postseason, with Ole Miss advancing to the National Invitation Tournament semifinals.
The contest at New Mexico is part of the Cancun Challenge. UCF will conclude the event in Mexico, playing Morehead State (Nov. 29) and South Dakota State (Nov. 30). The trip to Cancun will mark the third time since 2004 that the Knights will compete in an event outside the continental United States.
Florida also played in the postseason NIT semifinals last season. The Gators will meet UCF in Jacksonville on Dec. 20 at the Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena.
The home non-conference slate is highlighted by a visit from cross-state foe USF on Dec. 6. The Bulls have not played UCF in Orlando since 2002. Valparaiso will conclude a home-and-home series with the Knights on Nov. 22 at the new UCF Arena.
UCF will begin the UCF Holiday Classic on Dec. 29 against Penn, and then meet Campbell or Chicago State the following day. Home contests with Sam Houston State (Jan. 3) and Holy Cross (Jan. 6) conclude the non-conference portion of the team's schedule.
The Knights will play one exhibition game before opening the slate, hosting Flagler on Nov. 11.
Last season, the Knights made their debut at the state-of-the-art new UCF Arena. UCF won 12 contests at the spacious facility and established a school single-season attendance record.
In only its third campaign in the 12-team league, UCF finished fourth in C-USA in 2007-08. Taylor garnered All-C-USA Second Team honors after averaging 20.8 points per game.
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For the latest news on the Knights, log on to UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.