July 9, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Former UCF star Jermaine Taylor will make his professional debut Friday when Houston opens play at the 2009 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas. The Rockets are slated to compete in five contests at the event, concluding play on July 16.
Taylor was recently selected with the 32nd overall pick in the NBA Draft by Washington. On draft night, the 2008-09 Conference USA Player of the Year was traded to the Rockets.
Houston will face Golden State Friday. The Rockets will also meet Dallas, Minnesota, Portland and the Los Angeles Lakers at the COX Pavilion on the UNLV campus. Rockets' assistant coach Elston Turner will coach the squad.
Houston's 14-man roster includes a pair of players that Taylor is already familiar with. Joey Dorsey, who is in his second year with the Rockets, starred at Memphis. Fellow rookie Marcus Cousin is another former C-USA player from Houston.
As a senior this past season, Taylor ranked third nationally in scoring at 26.2 points per game. After the campaign, he received Basketball Times All-America Third Team honors.
Season-ticket deposits for the 2009-10 UCF men's basketball campaign are currently being accepted. For more information, visit UCFAthletics.com or call (407) UCF-1000.
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.
Notes: Sophomore guard Isaac Sosa (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico) and the Puerto Rican squad will meet Croatia Friday in the quarterfinals of the FIBA U19 World Championship in Auckland, New Zealand. Puerto Rico is 4-2 at the 16-team event. Sosa is averaging 11.3 points in New Zealand and is the tournament co-leader in 3-point field goal percentage (62.5, 15-of-24)... Junior forward Jean Michel Yotio (Abidjan, Ivory Coast) is currently in Sacramento, Calif. Yotio has been invited to train with the Ivory Coast Senior National Team. He is not a member of the squad, but will have the chance to play with and against the best players from his homeland. Ivory Coast is training for the FIBA Africa Championship, which will be held in Libya in August.