Nov. 20, 2009
By Andrew Gavin
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - The UCF women's basketball team opens its third season at the UCF Arena Friday night, hosting Bethune-Cookman at 7 p.m. After going a perfect 8-0 on their home court in conference play last season, head coach Joi Williams and her team will also be looking to secure their ninth-straight home victory in the game against Bethune-Cookman (1-1).
More importantly to Williams, UCF (0-1) will aim to bounce back with a stronger performance after falling 78-53 in the season opener Sunday afternoon at #24 Middle Tennessee State. Junior Emma Cannon, who was named the C-USA Preseason Player of the Year prior to the season, scored 19 points and grabbed 18 rebounds for her 34th career double-double.
Friday's game will feature a live audio internet broadcast through Stretch Audio Internet. Click here to hear it free of charge. A live audio and video webcast is available through Knights' All-Access. With Scott Adams and Andrew Gavin on the call, both will begin at 6:45 p.m.
INSIDE THE SERIES: UCF holds a 11-4 edge in the all-time series against Bethune-Cookman. The team's last met on Nov. 28, 2007, in Orlando, with UCF winning 73-52. Then freshmen, D'Nay Daniels and Marshay White had 17 and 14 points respectively for the Knights.
UCF VS. THE SUNSHINE STATE: In the history of the program, UCF has played 355 games against 25 different schools from the state of Florida. The Knights have an all-time record of 191-167 in those contests. UCF played six games against Florida teams a season ago, going 2-4. The Knights play four such schools in 2009-10, including BCU, Jacksonville, Florida Atlantic and Florida State.
OPEN HOUSE: Entering Friday night, UCF has a 19-13 record in its 32 home openers, including a 1-1 mark in two games on its current home floor. The Knights posted a 71-69 victory over another team from the Sunshine State, Florida A&M, in their home opener a season ago.
HOME SWEET HOME: UCF is looking for its ninth-straight victory at the UCF Arena. After a 1-4 start, the Knights won their final eight home games in 2008-09. Three more victories would tie the program's Division I record for consecutive at home. The 1998-99 team won 11-straight games at the old UCF Arena. UCF needs to double the current streak to tie the program's all-time record of 16, set across two season from 1983 to 1984. That mark included the final eight games of the 1982-83 season and the first eight of the 1983-84 campaign.
NO PLACE LIKE HOME:
- The Knights went a perfect 8-0 in Conference USA play at home last season.
- UCF knocked down 39.6 percent of its three-point attempts at home in 2008-09.
- The Knights averaged 72.4 points per game and had a scoring margin of plus-4.5.
- Chelsie Wiley averaged 18.5 points per game and hit 47.9 percent (35-73) of her threes.
- Emma Cannon posted averages of 16.2 points and 12 rebounds per home game.
TOUGH SLATE: A year after playing one of the nation's most difficult non-conference schedules, UCF will again be challenged in 2009-10. The Knights' already played #24 MTSU, and the non-conference schedule also includes home games against Notre Dame and Florida State, currently ranked #6 and #10 respectively in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches Poll.
Season and single-game tickets are currently available with the UCF Ticket Office. Knight fans can purchase season tickets for each of the team's 14 home games for just $39. For more information on purchasing tickets, contact the UCF ticket office at (407) 823-1000.
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.