Dec. 1, 2009
By Andrew Gavin
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Looking to avoid any early-season rust, UCF (1-1) will hit the road for its first game in 12 days Wednesday in Jacksonville. The game will mark another homecoming for head coach Joi Williams, a Jacksonville native who will be coaching in her hometown for the third time in as many seasons since taking over at UCF.
Williams has guided the Knights to wins in the previous two games in the city, including a victory over North Florida in 2007-08 and a 75-71 thrilling win against JU on Dec. 15, 2008. UCF trailed by as many as eight in the second half before rallying behind a go-ahead three-pointer and a team-high 14 points from Chelsie Wiley (Riviera Beach, Fla.).
Jacksonville (1-4) has struggled early in the season in many more contests, posting only a win over Florida Tech in five contests. In their last outing, JU fell on the road at Howard 58-42.
UCF also had 12 days between games at the end of last season between the Conference USA Championships and the NCAA Tournament. The layoff is the longest for the UCF program during the regular season since a 14-day break during the 2003-04 season.
The contest will feature a live audio internet broadcast through Stretch Audio Internet. Click here to hear it free of charge. Scott Adams and Andrew Gavin will be on the call, with the broadcast set to begin at 6:45 p.m.
LAST TIME OUT: Junior Marshay White (Rochester, N.Y.) scored 23 points off the bench and added seven rebounds and six assists to lead UCF to an 80-46 victory over Bethune-Cookman at the UCF Arena.
INSIDE THE SERIES: In 15 meetings all-time with Jacksonville, UCF has a 9-6 record, including wins in the last two seasons. The Knights are 4-4 in Swisher Gymnasium after getting a 75-71 win a season ago.
UCF VS. THE SUNSHINE STATE: In the history of the program, UCF has played 356 games against 25 different schools from the state of Florida. The Knights have an all-time record of 192-167 in those contests, including the win over Bethune-Cookman on Nov. 20. The Knights play four Florida schools in 2009-10, with Florida Atlantic and Florida State still on the schedule.
DOMINANCE: The 34-point win over Bethune-Cookman was the program's biggest margin of victory since the Knights defeated Campbell 81-40 on Feb. 19, 2006.
OPEN HOUSE: The victory over BCU was UCF's 20th win in a season opener in program history. UCF now has a 20-13 record in its 33 home openers, including a 2-1 mark in three games on its current home floor.
HOME SWEET HOME: With the victory against Bethune-Cookman, UCF ran its winning streak on its home floor to nine games dating back to 2008-09. After a 1-4 start, the Knights won their final eight home games a season ago. The Knights are now just two more home wins from tying the program's Division I record for consecutive at home. The 1998-99 team won 11-straight games at the old UCF Arena. UCF is seven wins from 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.
RESERVE SPARKS: With her 23 points off the bench against Bethune-Cookman, White helped the Knights to a 36-9 edge in bench points. Sophomore Racine Davis and freshman Gevenia Carter also each scored their first career points off the UCF bench, tallying seven and four points respectively.
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.
CLIMBING THE CHARTS: In just over two seasons at UCF, junior Emma Cannon (Rochester, N.Y.) is already among the leaders in numerous places in the program's record book. She ranks second all-time in double-doubles (34) and rebound average (10.2). With 675 rebounds, she is also third in that category and is just two boards away from second place. She is also fourth in free throws made (257) and sixth in scoring average (13.7). She went over 900 career points against Bethune-Cookman and is just 96 points from becoming the 12th member of UCF's 1,000-point club.
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.