Dec. 22, 2009
By Doug Richards
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - On Sunday, 14th-ranked UConn's starting frontcourt featured a 6-foot-9 forward, a 6-foot-9 center and a 6-foot-11 forward. Despite the impressive size of the Huskies, UCF redshirt freshman Dave Diakite (Washington, D.C.) dominated on the glass, grabbing a game-high and career-best 13 rebounds.
Diakite, who is listed at 6-foot-6, registered six offensive boards.
His performance pleased head coach Kirk Speraw, who had been waiting for the athletic Diakite to control the boards. Diakite recorded at least 10 rebounds in two of UCF's first three games this year, but had struggled in the team's last few contests.
"I don't know where he has been with that energy," Speraw said. "He came out (against UConn) and gave us great effort. We need that energy and we had that effort. He needs to bring that each game."
Diakite now leads UCF in rebounding, averaging 6.8 per game. Twenty eight of his 75 boards have come on the offensive end. He is also averaging 7.0 points.
Surprisingly, his best rebounding games have come away from Orlando. Diakite is averaging 7.9 boards in road and neutral site contests, compared to 6.2 at the UCF Arena.
Diakite and the Knights' next contest is Dec. 29 against visiting Liberty at 7 p.m. The contest is part of the UCF Holiday Classic, which also includes Buffalo and Jacksonville.
A special "Pick Your Starting Five" ticket plan is currently available. The plan allows fans to select tickets to five games of their choice for as little as $45. To purchase the "Pick Your Starting Five Plan" today, call (407) UCF-1000 or visit UCFAthletics.com.
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: The first day of the UCF Holiday Classic, Dec. 29, will feature a tripleheader. The UCF women's team will start things off by hosting Notre Dame at Noon. At 4:30 p.m., Buffalo will meet Jacksonville to open the UCF Holiday Classic. Then the Knights will cap the day by hosting Liberty... Former UCF guard Dave Noel scored 11 points and had four rebounds as Reno fell to Rio Grande Valley in NBA D-League action Monday evening.