Jan. 18, 2011
="" alt="Knight Head" border="0" class="imported"> Read John Denton's Knights Insider | ="" alt="Twitter Logo" border="0" class="imported">Follow us on Twitter | ="" alt="Facebook Logo" border="0" class="imported">Get social with the Knights on Facebook
By Doug Richards
UCFAthletics.com
Complete Release in PDF Format
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Needing just one victory to match its win total from a year ago, the UCF men's basketball team will return to the UCF Arena floor Wednesday to host Conference USA foe East Carolina at 7 p.m. The first 1,500 fans to enter the arena will receive a free UCF UKnight t-shirt courtesy of game sponsor SunTrust Banks.
The Knights (14-2, 1-2 C-USA), who are receiving votes in both national polls, have opened the Donnie Jones era at UCF in strong fashion. UCF went 15-17 in 2009-10, and can match the victory total with just one win.
UCF is 10-0 at home this season. The Knights will be playing at the UCF Arena for the first time since Jan. 5, when they opened league play with a 65-58 triumph over Marshall.
Sophomore guard Marcus Jordan (Chicago, Ill.) has been solid since conference play began. He is averaging a team-high 18.7 points in league play. Jordan totaled 26 points in the win over Marshall.
The Pirates are 9-8 overall and 1-2 in league games under new head coach Jeff Lebo. East Carolina fell to visiting UAB, 66-59, Monday in a game that was rescheduled from last week due to inclement weather in North Carolina. Jontae Sherrod leads the team in scoring at 14.2 points per game.
Tickets for the contest are available at Ticketmaster.com or at UCFAthletics.com. On Wednesday, the UCF Arena box office will be open before the contest. UCF students are admitted free with a valid school ID.
UCF-East Carolina will be televised live in central Florida on Bright House Sports Network. David Baumann will handle the play-by-play, and will be joined on the broadcast by former UCF standout guard Mike O'Donnell.
Fans in Orlando can listen to the game on the UCF Sports Network and its flagship station, 740 The Game. Marc Daniels will have the call from courtside. Live video and statistics will be available on UCFAthletics.com.
Series Record UCF, 11-2
Last Meeting East Carolina 68, UCF 66 (March 2, 2010 in Orlando)
? UCF has an 11-2 edge in the all-time series with the Pirates, and has won five of six matchups against East Carolina in Orlando
? In the last series meeting, the Pirates rallied for a 68-66 victory over the Knights at the UCF Arena on March 2, 2010
? A.J. Tyler paced the Knights with 16 points, and Jamar Abrams led East Carolina with 20 points
? When he was the head coach at Marshall, Donnie Jones' teams went 5-1 versus the Pirates
? A year ago, UCF posted an 84-74 victory over Auburn at the Glenn Wilkes Classic in Daytona Beach when the Tigers were coached by current East Carolina head coach Jeff Lebo
Last Time Out
? Southern Miss used a 21-2 second-half run to pull away and post an 86-69 victory over the Knights Saturday in Hattiesburg
? The Golden Eagles shot 62.1 percent in the second half after they took a one-point lead into intermission
? Marcus Jordan led the Knights with 20 points, and Keith Clanton added 14 points and seven boards
? UCF fared well offensively, shooting 44.6 percent overall and hitting a season-high 11 3-pointers
Fast Forward
? UCF needs just one victory to match its win total from a year ago
? Last year, UCF did not win its 15th game until March 10 at the Conference USA Championship
? The Knights started this year with 14-straight victories to record the best start at UCF since the program moved to the Division I ranks in 1984
Getting Their Best
? Teams are clearly playing at a higher level than normal when they face the Knights
? On Saturday, Southern Miss shot 51.6 percent overall against the Knights, well above the team's season field goal percentage of 45.8
? In UCF's previous game, Houston made 50.0 percent of its attempts from 3-point range
? The Cougars are shooting 39.1 percent from deep on the year
Seventy Something
? Donnie Jones needs just one win claim his 70th career victory
? In his fourth year as a head coach, Jones is 69-43 overall
? Before coming to UCF, Jones went 55-41 in three years as the head coach at Marshall
Second Time Around
? Donnie Jones is familiar with quick turnarounds as he guided Marshall to a 16-14 overall mark in his first campaign as the school's head coach in 2007-08
? The previous year, the Thundering Herd went 13-19
? The winning season in Jones' first campaign at Marshall was the first in seven years at the school
Homecourt Advantage
? UCF is 10-0 at home this season, and has already surpassed its win total at the UCF Arena from a year ago when it went 9-6
? The Knights are averaging 77.7 points on 51.4 percent shooting at home, compared to 72.2 points on 43.5 percent shooting in true road games
Crowded House
? With the Knights one of the nation's top teams, fans are flocking to the UCF Arena this season as UCF is averaging 6,103 spectators
? Four of the top-10 crowds in program history have already been recorded this year
? In the team's last home game on Jan. 5, 9,094 fans - the third-largest crowd in school history - watched the Knights top Marshall in the Conference USA opener for both teams
? UCF averaged a school-record 5,411 fans in 2009-10
Swat Team
? Last season, UCF totaled 95 blocked shots in 32 games
? Through only 16 contests this season, the Knights have already recorded 107 blocks
? UCF ranks fifth in the nation in blocks per game at 6.7
? Tom Herzog (37 blocks) ranks 18th in the country with 2.6 blocks per game, and Keith Clanton (33 blocks) is 47th at 2.1
Shut Em' Down
? Last season, a player scored over 20 points against the Knights on 17 occasions
? This year, UCF has done its best to contain high-scoring outbursts from its opponents as no player has totaled more than 20 points versus the squad
? Two players - Dan Mavraides of Princeton and Vernon Macklin - recorded 20 points against the Knights
Getting to the Glass ? UCF is doing a better job on the boards this season, as the team is averaging 37.4 rebounds per game
? The Knights averaged 32.9 boards in 2009-10
? The squad has outrebounded its opponents in 10 of 16 games this year
Bench Mob
? UCF's bench has outscored its opponent's reserves in 13 of 16 games this year
? The squad's bench is averaging 29.1 points, compared to 18.0 for the Knights' foes
Triple Play
? As a freshman, Keith Clanton did not have the touch from deep, as he made just 4-of-21 (19.0 percent) attempts from 3-point range
? Clanton has shot much better from deep this year, as he has hit 46.4 percent (13-of-28) of his tries
Follow the Leader
? Marcus Jordan has led the Knights in scoring in eight games this year, compared to three as a freshman
? Jordan, who has five 20-point performances in 2010-11, has paced the team in points in two of three Conference USA games
Deep Dish
? Marcus Jordan is doing more than just scoring for the Knights, as he is second on the team averaging 3.2 assists per game
? The Chicago native has paced the team in assists on seven occasions
Up Next
? On Saturday, the Knights will conclude their two-game homestand against Rice
? UCF has an 8-3 edge in the all-time series with the Owls and won both matchups a year ago