April 22, 2010
By Doug Richards
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - For the last three weeks, members of the UCF men's basketball team got a glimpse into the future as new head coach Donnie Jones led the Knights during their annual spring individual workout sessions. The workouts, held inside of the UCF Basketball Practice Facility, consisted mostly of individual skill development.
The sessions gave squad members a chance to get acclimated with Jones' desired style of play: up-tempo, all the time.
Jones urged his new pupils to not only play fast, but to practice fast as well. According to junior forward A.J. Tyler (Palm Harbor, Fla.), the workouts were different from what the team was accustomed to. Still, he feels that the team adapted to the new style.
"They are very intense, fast-paced," he said. "We really got after it and pushed each other. They were really competitive."
Junior guard Taylor Young (Orlando, Fla.) was also pleased with the workouts, which were also supervised by new assistant coaches Shawn Finney, Brett Nelson and Darren Tillis.
"I thought they went great. People made the transition well and people really tried to buy in and work as hard as they possibly could for the team."
The majority of the team plans to remain on campus this summer and play pickup games regularly.
The UCF ticket sales office is currently accepting season-ticket deposits for the 2010-11 campaign at (407) UCF-1000 or online at UCFAthletics.com. By placing their deposit now, fans will receive a free 2010-11 NIKE Knightmare t-shirt with their ticket purchase. Season tickets start at just $99.
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.