March 3, 2009
Complete Release in PDF Format
TULSA, Okla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Senior guard Jermaine Taylor (Tavares, Fla.) of the UCF men's basketball team will be seeking another record when the Knights face host Tulsa on Wednesday at 8 p.m. Eastern at the Reynolds Center. The All-America candidate needs just six points to set a Conference USA single-season league scoring record.
Taylor, who is third nationally at 26.1 points per game, has totaled 401 points in conference tilts this year. He is averaging 28.6 points in league play. Robert McKiver established a league scoring record in 2007-08, registering 406 points for Houston.
The Knights enter Wednesday's game 16-12 overall and 6-8 in league play. Tulsa (20-9, 10-4) has won three-consecutive games.
The contest will air on the UCF-ISP Sports Network and WYGM 740 AM in Orlando. Marc Daniels will have the call from Oklahoma. Pregame coverage will begin at 7:30 p.m.
Live statistics and video will be available on UCFAthletics.com.
After meeting the Golden Hurricane, UCF will conclude the regular-season campaign on Saturday, hosting East Carolina at the UCF Arena.
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.
About Tulsa
? The Golden Hurricane have won three-consecutive games and are 13-3 overall at home this year
? Tulsa boasts one of the nation's top defenses as the team is limiting foes to just 61.2 points per game
? The Golden Hurricane rank second in Conference USA in field-goal percentage (45.4)
? One of the top big men in the country, Jerome Jordan is averaging 14.2 points while shooting 59.1 percent, which paces the league
? He leads C-USA in rebounds (9.1) and blocks (2.6) per game
? Ben Uzoh is the team's top scorer at 14.7 points an outing
? Ray Reese scored 24 points and Uzoh added 20 as Tulsa topped host SMU, 74-64, Saturday
Series Information
? The all-time series with Tulsa is tied 4-4
? The Golden Hurricane have a 4-0 edge against UCF in Tulsa
? When the teams met on Feb. 14 in Orlando, Jermaine Taylor and A.J. Rompza guided UCF to a 74-72 comeback victory
? Taylor totaled 22 of his game-high 35 points after intermission and Rompza hit a jumper in the lane with less than a second remaining to win the contest
? The Knights trailed by 17 points with just over 10 minutes remaining in second half
? In last season's meeting in Tulsa, the Golden Hurricane limited UCF to a 33.9 percent shooting effort and posted a 71-53 win on March 8 in the regular-season finale for both teams
? Tulsa led 22-21 at the break and then outscored the Knights 49-32 after halftime
? Playing without starting point guard Mike O'Donnell, who injured his foot the day before the contest, UCF was led by Dave Noel, who scored 17 points
? In six games against Tulsa, Taylor is averaging 16.3 points
Last Time Out
? Despite a game-high 28 points from Jermaine Taylor, the Knights came up short at Marshall Saturday, falling 67-62
? UCF had the chance to tie the game at 65 with five seconds remaining, but Taylor's 3-point attempt was off the mark
Up Next for the Knights
? The Knights will conclude the regular season Saturday hosting East Carolina
? UCF is 4-0 all-time against the Pirates in Orlando
Sweet 16
? With two regular-season games, and at least one contest at the Conference USA Championship to play, the Knights need one victory to surpass their win total from a year ago
? UCF's win over visiting Tulsa on Feb. 14 gave the squad its 16th victory of the season
? In 2007-08, UCF went 16-15
Getting Offensive
? UCF is among the Conference USA leaders in field-goal percentage, shooting 45.2 percent overall
? That mark ranks third in the league
? The Knights are also third in C-USA in 3-point field goal percentage (36.2)
? The team is connecting on 7.3 triples an outing, good for second in the league
? UCF is attempting an average of 20.0 treys per game
Sharing the Rock
? Thanks to A.J. Rompza and Taylor Young, the Knights pace Conference USA and rank 40th nationally in assists, averaging 15.6 a contest
Hit the Freeway
? The Knights lead Conference USA, shooting 80.0 percent at the free-throw line in league action
? That fact should come as a surprise to those who watched the team play at the start of the year
? UCF shot 70.1 percent at the line during non-conference play
? UCF especially struggled at the charity stripe at the start of the season as the squad shot just 61.1 percent from the line during six games in November
? On the year, the Knights are shooting 74.6 percent at the line, which ranks second in C-USA
? During the last five minutes of contests, UCF is shooting at a 74.7 percent clip
? Taylor Young (10-of-12, 83.3 percent) and Jermaine Taylor (33-of-41, 80.5 percent) have been the squad's top shooters at the line down the stretch of games
Free Falling
? If the campaign ended today, UCF's free-throw percentage (74.6) would be good for a school Division I single-season record
? The current D-I record is 73.0, which was achieved during the 2002-03 campaign
? The school joined the D-I ranks in 1984
? UCF's 1975-76 squad established a program record by shooting 76.1 percent at the charity stripe
Hey Young World
? With eight true freshmen and 12 total underclassmen, UCF is the fifth youngest team in the country
? The Knights currently have just three upperclassmen - seniors Jermaine Taylor and Kenrick Zondervan and junior Drew Speraw
Senior Moments
? Kenrick Zondervan has clearly elevated his game in Conference USA play
? He is averaging 9.2 points and 5.0 rebounds against league foes
? During the non-conference portion of UCF's schedule, he averaged 4.6 points and 3.8 rebounds
Grab a Rebound
? Since being inserted into the UCF starting lineup against Houston on Feb. 21, A.J. Tyler has been strong on the glass for the Knights, averaging a team-high 7.3 rebounds in three contests
Pass it On
? A.J. Rompza is third in Conference USA and 40th in the country, dishing out 5.0 assists per game
? He has registered at least five assists 15 times and on three occasions, the freshman has recorded at least 10 assists
? Rompza has played in 26 of UCF's games and has registered 132 assists
? A year ago, Chip Cartwright paced the squad with 107 assists on the season
Three's Company
? Isaac Sosa is shooting at a 46.4 percent clip from deep, making 52-of-112 attempts
? The percentage would lead Conference USA, but he is averaging less than two 3-pointers per game
? Sosa, who has made five starts for the Knights, is second on the team among active players, averaging 8.3 points
Changing Faces
? Kirk Speraw has used seven different starting lineups in 2008-09
? Nine Knights have logged starts during the year
? Three freshmen - Chris Baez, A.J. Rompza and Isaac Sosa - have appeared in the starting lineup
Jermaine Taylor Notes
Scoring Machine
? One of the premier players in the country, Jermaine Taylor ranks third nationally in scoring at 26.1 points per game
? The shooting guard has led the Knights in scoring in 27 of the team's 28 contests in 2008-09
? Taylor has paced the squad in points in 23-consecutive games
? He has recorded eight 30-point showings and one 40-point performance
? In each of UCF's last 12 games, Taylor has scored at least 20 points
? Below is a list of the leading scorers in the nation, through games of March 1:
1. Stephen Curry, Davidson (28.5)
2. Lester Hudson, Tennessee-Martin (26.6)
3. Jermaine Taylor, UCF (26.1)
4. David Holston, Chicago State (25.9)
5. Jodie Meeks, Kentucky (25.1)
Major League
? Taylor is averaging 28.6 points in Conference USA play and has scored at least 18 points in each of UCF's league contests
? If the season ended today, his conference average would be a league record
? Houston's Robert McKiver holds the C-USA mark after averaging 25.4 points a year ago
? Taylor has scored 401 points in league action this year and needs just six points to set a C-USA single-season record
? McKiver currently occupies the top spot on the conference single-season scoring register with 406 points last year
Moving On Up
? With just three points against Tulsa, Taylor will move to fifth on the Conference USA career scoring list
? Rodney Carney (Memphis, 2003-06) is currently fifth with 1,901 points
Big Five
? Taylor was unstoppable in UCF's last five contests, averaging 36.2 points
? He began the stretch with 38 points at UTEP on Feb. 11 and followed that with 35 points in a home win over Tulsa on Feb. 14
? Taylor totaled 35 points at Houston (Feb. 21) and then set numerous records with 45 points against Rice on Feb. 25
? At Marshall on Saturday, he registered 28 points
? During the five games, he shot 48.4 percent overall and went 44-of-49 (89.8 percent) at the charity stripe
The Number One Spot
? During the first half of UCF's victory over Tulsa on Feb. 14, Taylor became UCF's all-time leading scorer at the Division I level (since 1984-85)
? He has totaled 1,899 points during his time in Orlando
? Against the Golden Hurricane, he passed Ken Leeks, who scored 1,763 points from 1988-92
? Taylor is third all-time on the school's overall career scoring list
? Bo Clark (1975-77, 78-80) is the program's career leader with 2,866 points
Points Taken
? If the campaign ended today, Taylor's overall scoring average of 26.1 points would rank second in Conference USA single-season history
? Morris Almond of Rice averaged a C-USA record 26.4 points in 2006-07
Triple Trouble
? Taylor is shooting 39.4 percent from 3-point range, good for fourth in the conference
? Taylor leads the league with a 3.6 triples per game average in conference games
? Against Houston on Feb. 4, Taylor hit three treys to become UCF's career leader in 3-pointers
? He has made 244 triples at UCF
? Jason Thornton was the all-time leader in the category as he hit 220 3-pointers from 1998-02
? Taylor has attempted a school record 639 3-pointers during his career
More with Less
? Last season, Taylor averaged a team-high 20.8 points in 33.5 minutes per game
? This season, he has been more productive despite playing fewer minutes, averaging 26.1 points in only 31.5 minutes per contest
Honor Roll
? Taylor has garnered five Conference USA Player of the Week honors this season
? The five C-USA Player of the Week awards for Taylor are the most in a single season for a league player since the 2002-03 campaign, when Dwyane Wade of Marquette was recognized five times
? During his career, Taylor has been honored seven times
So Much More
? This season, Taylor is exhibiting that he is more than just a lethal scorer
? He is second on the team on the glass in 2008-09, grabbing 5.3 rebounds per contest
? Taylor, who is listed at 6-foot-4, is tied for first on the squad with 22 blocks
? He is also averaging 2.0 assists an outing