Jan. 18, 2011
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By Pat Salvas
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Coming off its first Conference USA loss of the season, the UCF women's basketball team will look to rebound Thursday night at Memphis at 8 p.m. The Knights (10-7, 3-1) dropped their first league game of 2010-11 Sunday afternoon in Dallas against SMU, 70-63, snapping a five-game winning streak in the process.
Trailing at halftime for the first time in a month, UCF mounted a comeback push in the second half that just fell short. Senior D'Nay Daniels (Atlanta, Ga.) and junior Aisha Patrick (Rockledge, Fla.) led the UCF comeback attempt with strong second-half performances.
Daniels scored a game-high 17 points, while all 14 of Patrick's points in the game came in the second half. Both pulled down nine rebounds in the contest to lead all players. Patrick, already known as one of the league's premier defenders, had a career-high seven steals, including six in the second half to help keep the Knights in striking distance until the very end.
After winning 10-straight games, Memphis (13-5, 2-2) has dropped its last two contests. With wins over Marshall and ECU to start the conference schedule, the Tigers were tripped up by UTEP at home, 60-55, on Thursday night before taking a second loss in as many games at UAB on Sunday afternoon. The loss to the Miners was just the second at home this season for Memphis. The team is led by junior Brittany Carter and her 13.2 points per game this season with Jasmine Lee's 12.1 points ranking second this season.
After UCF and Memphis square off at the Elma Roane Fieldhouse on Thursday, the Knights will be back at the UCF Arena Sunday afternoon to take on Marshall at 2 p.m.
Season and single-game tickets are on sale now as well with season ticket packages starting at just $39. Fans can purchase tickets online here or by calling (407) UCF-1000.
Thursday's Game
UCF enters Thursday's game with Memphis having lost its most recent contest, 70-63, at SMU on Sunday afternoon. The loss was the first in five games for the Knights and their first in Conference USA after starting the league schedule with three-straight wins.
Scouting the Tigers
Memphis began the league slate with wins over Marshall and ECU to extend its winning streak to 10 games. That streak was snapped, however, to UTEP at home on Jan.13. The Tigers then went on to lose its next game on Sunday at UAB, marking the first time this season that they had lost consecutive games. Brittany Carter leads the team in scoring at 13.2 per game, while Jasmine Lee is the team leader in rebounds at 9.3 a contest.
All-Time Series
UCF holds a slight edge in the all-time series with a 6-5 record. The two teams played twice last season with Memphis winning both games. The Knights are 3-2 all-time at the Elma Roane Fieldhouse with its last win on the Tigers' home floor coming on Jan. 8, 2009 in an 18-point victory, 85-67.
On the Air
The rest of the UCF women's basketball season will be broadcast through Genesis Communications and can be heard on either WAMT 1190 AM or WHOO ESPN 1080 AM. Scott Adams will have the call live from Memphis on Thursday and for the rest of the season.
Almost Three
Against SMU, senior D'Nay Daniels was one rebound away from her third-straight double-double. The Knights' top post player scored a game-high 17 points and had a game-high nine boards. Daniels leads UCF this season with four double-doubles.
Close to 14
With her 17 points against SMU, Daniels moved to within six of becoming the 14th player in program history to reach 1,000-career points. Sitting at 994, the fourth-year player will look to join current teammate Chelsie Wiley in the 1,000-point club on Thursday night.
Eerily Similar
For the fourth time this season, junior Aisha Patrick tied Daniels for the team lead in rebounds as she also pulled down nine against the Mustangs in the only regular-season meeting this season between the two schools.
Season High in Steals
Patrick set a new UCF season-best mark with seven steals at SMU. Patrick's previous career high in thefts was six; a mark she equaled in the second half alone after recording one in the first 20 minutes of play. Those six steals in the second half helped lead to points in transition as the Knights feverishly mounted a comeback. She now ranks sixth all-time at UCF with 184 career steals.
Reversal of Fortune
After going 24-of-27 from the free-throw line against UAB, the Knights went to the stripe just 16 times against the Mustangs, connecting on 11. In contrast, SMU was 23-of-26 from the line in the game, including its final eight points to seal the win in the final minutes.
Statistical Anomaly
For the second time this season, UCF lost a game in which it had more field goals than its opponent. Against Florida in the season opener, the Knights were 26-for-77 from the field, while the Gators were 25-of-61. At SMU, UCF was 23-of-56 from the floor, while the Mustangs connected on 21 of their 46 attempts.
More From the Bench
In the last four games, the Knights' starting five have accounted for 87.3 percent of the team's total scoring output. During that time, the bench has scored just 35 of 276 points, including just 11 in the last two games.
At the Half
SMU led at the half, 38-31. The seven-point deficit marked the first time that UCF trailed going into the locker room since Dec. 15 when they were down 37-19 at Florida State. Prior to Sunday, the Knights were 6-1 since the loss to the Seminoles with their only blemish coming at Wright State after leading 35-31 at the midway point.
Have to Shoot Better
When UCF has a higher field goal percentage than its opponent, the Knights are 10-0 this season. On the flip side, the team has yet to overcome a lower shooting percentage to defeat an opponent, posting a record of 0-7 when being outshot.