Feb. 20, 2009
EL PASO, Texas (UCFAthletics.com) - Despite getting 15 points and 17 rebounds from sophomore Emma Cannon (Rochester, N.Y.), UCF (11-15, 9-4 C-USA) shot just 27.5 percent from the field, started slowly in both halves and fell 61-49 at UTEP (16-10, 9-4 C-USA) Thursday night in Conference USA women's basketball action at the Don Haskins Center. With the loss, UCF currently sits in a tie for third-place in the league standings with UTEP.
Three early triples, including two by freshman Deitra Caldwell, gave UTEP an 11-10 lead at the 15:28 mark of the first half. The Miners then ripped off a 10-0 run to lead 21-10 with 8:25 on the clock.
However, getting five-straight points at one point by sophomore point guard Angelica Mealing (Decatur, Ga.), UCF used a 17-5 run to end the half to claim a 27-26 lead at the break. Sophomore Chelsie Wiley (Riviera Beach, Fla.) scored the last four of the half, including a jumper with 26 seconds left for the halftime margin.
UCF hit just 11-of-36 shots in the first half, but used 15 offensive rebounds and a 29-14 edge on the glass to aid its comeback. Cannon had seven points and eight rebounds in the opening 20 minutes.
After a Cannon layup gave UCF a 29-27 lead a minute into the second half, UTEP freshman Deitra Caldwell drilled three from long range as part of an 11-0 run to give the Miners a 38-29 lead just four minutes later. Caldwell connected on 6-of-8 threes in the game and finished with 19 points.
Cannon scored on another layup with 11:41 to end a drought of over seven minutes without a UCF field goal. The Miners then added another 8-0 run moments later to lead 46-32 with 8:02 remaining in the contest, and the Knights could not close the deficit below 10 points the rest of the way.
With her 17 rebounds, Cannon climbed into the top-10 on the UCF career rebounds list with 547 boards in less than two seasons. The conference's leading rebounder at 11.0 per game has 286 on the season, the sixth-highest single-season total in the program's history. Cannon reached double figures for the 23rd in the 26 games, but hit just 7-of-21 shots from the floor.
For the game, UCF attempted 20 more shots than UTEP (69-49), but the Miners hit 20 field goals compared to just 19 for the Knights. UCF finished just 19-for-69, including 8-of-33 in the second half for 24.2 percent. UTEP meanwhile hit 10-for-22 in the second 20 minutes and finished the game 20-for-49.
C-USA Preseason Player of the Year Jareica Hughes led all scorers with 20 points, hitting 6-of-13 shots from the field and 7-for-9 from the line. Mealing was the only UCF player to join Cannon in double figures, adding 10 points.
UCF concludes its four-game road trip on Saturday at Tulane. The Knights and the Green Wave will tip the contest off at 2 p.m. eastern time from Fogelman Arena in New Orleans, La. Tulane defeated Southern Miss, the top team in C-USA, 77-60 Thursday night behind 31 points from Brittany Lindsey.
Season tickets for the UCF women's basketball program are currently on sale through the UCF ticket sales office. For more information about the arena's premium seating options, including club seats, group discounts, courtside tables and suites, contact the UCF ticket sales office at (407) UCF-1000 or visit the women's basketball ticket page at UCFAthletics.cstv.com/tickets/w-baskbl-tickets.html.
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.
Newspaper Box Score
UCF vs UTEP
2/19/09 7:05 p.m. at El Paso, Texas (Don Haskins Center)
At El Paso, Texas (Don Haskins Center)
UTEP 61, UCF 49
UCF (11-15, 9-4 C-USA)
Cannon, Emma 7-21 1-2 15; Mealing, Angelica 3-8 3-3 10; Wiley, Chelsie 2-15 2-2 7; Kirkpatrick, Amber 3-5 1-2 7; Patrick, Aisha 3-10 0-1 6; White, Marshay 1-2 1-2 3; Daniels, D'Nay 0-4 1-2 1; Paige, Leah 0-0 0-0 0; Caldwell, Jelisa 0-3 0-0 0; Stovall, Jasmine 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 19-69 9-14 49.
UTEP (16-10, 9-4 C-USA)
HUGHES, Jareica 6-13 7-9 20; CALDWELL, Deitra 6-10 1-2 19; JONES, Brittnay 4-9 3-4 11; GOODWIN, Fannie 2-4 1-2 5; WILLIAMS, Timika 1-5 1-2 3; CHAMBE, Ilda 1-5 1-3 3; TRUKSHANINA, S. 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 20-49 14-22 61.
UCF............................ 27 22 - 49
UTEP........................... 26 35 - 61
3-point goals--UCF 2-10 (Mealing, Angelica 1-3; Wiley, Chelsie 1-6; Caldwell, Jelisa 0-1), UTEP 7-13 (CALDWELL, Deitra 6-8; HUGHES, Jareica 1-2; GOODWIN, Fannie 0-1; TRUKSHANINA, S. 0-2). Fouled out--UCF-WHITE, Marshay, UTEP-None. Rebounds--UCF 49 (Cannon, Emma 17), UTEP 35 (WILLIAMS, Timika 8). Assists--UCF 9 (Wiley, Chelsie 4; Mealing, Angelica 4), UTEP 15 (HUGHES, Jareica 4; CALDWELL, Deitra 4). Total fouls--UCF 20, UTEP 19. Technical fouls--UCF-None, UTEP-None. A-2832