Jan. 3, 2012
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By Doug Richards
UCFAthletics.com
| UCF vs.Tulane | |
| Date | Wednesday, Jan. 4 |
| Time | 7 p.m. |
| Location | Orlando, Fla. | UCF Arena |
| Television | Bright House Sports Network |
| Radio | UCF IMG Sports Network - 740 AM |
| Tickets | Single-Game | Season |
| Internet Coverage | All-Access | |
| Game Notes | UCF Notes |
| Social Media | @UCF_MBasketball | Facebook |
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - After posting some impressive non-league victories, the UCF men's basketball team will now turn its attention to Conference USA play, which begins Wednesday with a home contest against Tulane. Tipoff at the UCF Arena is set for 7 p.m.
The Knights enter conference play at 10-3 and recorded notable victories over defending national champion UConn, College of Charleston and Old Dominion in November and December. UCF has won 13-straight home games and its contest against the Green Wave (12-2) is the first of eight C-USA games in Orlando for the Knights this year.
A special C-USA ticket plan, which includes tickets to all of UCF's home league games, is now available and starts at only $64. For more information on the plan, call (407) UCF-1000 or visit UCFAthletics.com. On Wednesday, tickets will be available before the game at the UCF Arena box office. UCF students are admitted free with a valid school ID.
Junior forward Keith Clanton (Orlando, Fla.) needs only 16 points to become just the 15th 1,000-point scorer in UCF history. Clanton is averaging 15.7 points and a team-high 9.5 rebounds this season. He also needs six boards to become the eighth player in school history with 600 career rebounds.
Tulane is off to its best start since 1994-95. The Green Wave began the campaign with nine-straight wins and owns a victory over Georgia Tech. Kendall Timmons leads the team in scoring at 13.7 points per game.
The game will be televised on Bright House Sports Network in central Florida. David Baumann will handle the play-by-play and will be joined by former Duke star and NBA veteran Christian Laettner.
UCF-Tulane will air on the UCF IMG Sports Network and its flagship station, 740 The Game in Orlando. Marc Daniels will have the call from courtside. Live video and statistics will be available at UCFAthletics.com.
Series History
? The Knights have a 6-2 edge in the all-time series with Tulane and have won four-straight contests
? UCF is 3-0 in Orlando against the Green Wave
? The teams met in New Orleans a year ago and the Knights escaped with a 65-62 victory on Feb. 16, 2011
? The Knights overcame an 11-point second-half deficit and were led by Keith Clanton with 18 points
? In the last series matchup in Orlando, UCF posted a 62-54 win over Tulane on Feb. 13, 2010
? The score was tied at 30 at halftime, but the Knights closed the game with a 23-5 run
? A.J. Rompza led UCF with 17 points
? UCF associate head coach Shawn Finney served as Tulane's head coach from 2000-05 and will guide the Knights against the Green Wave
Last Time Out
? Isaiah Sykes scored 14 points to help the Knights claim the UCF Holiday Classic with a 65-54 victory over Rhode Island on Dec. 30
? The Knights shot 44.9 percent from the floor and limited the Rams to a 35.6 percent shooting performance
? UCF led 31-25 at the break and recorded 15 assists in the win
? Keith Clanton added 13 points and eight boards in the win and Marcus Jordan chipped in with 12 points
? Sykes was named the tournament MVP after averaging 17.0 points and 7.0 in two contests and was joined on the all-tournament team by Jordan
Filling In
? Associate head coach Shawn Finney will guide the Knights against Tulane
? Head coach Donnie Jones will be sitting out the first of three Conference USA games as part of a school-imposed penalty that was announced in November following an NCAA investigation
? Finney has filled in for Jones before, ironically at the UCF Arena, while the pair was at Marshall
? Back in 2008, when Marshall played at UCF, Jones was unable to coach due to an illness and Finney led the Thundering Herd, who suffered an 87-69 loss to the Knights
Open for Business
? UCF has won two-straight Conference USA openers
? A year ago, the Knights opened C-USA play with a 65-58 victory over visiting Marshall
Streaking
? UCF has won 13-straight home contests dating back to last season
? The Knights are 8-0 in Orlando in 2011-12 and have not lost at home since Feb. 9, 2011 vs. Memphis
Joining the Club
? Keith Clanton needs only 16 points to become the 15th player in UCF history to reach the 1,000-point mark for their career
? Clanton has totaled 984 points in 78 contests as a Knight
? Only nine players have recorded over 1,000 points during their careers since UCF moved to the Division I level in 1984, with the last being Jermaine Taylor
? Taylor scored his 1,000th career point in his 82nd game at UCF as a junior in 2008
? He finished with a school D-I record 1,979 points
? Clanton already ranks 10th on the UCF D-I scoring chart
Cleaning the Glass
? Keith Clanton should record another milestone against Tulane as the junior needs only six boards to reach the 600-career rebound mark
? The former Orlando Christian Prep star ranks seventh in school history with 594 rebounds
? Only six Knights have grabbed at least 600 boards since the program's inception in 1969
Block it Out
? During the win over Rhode Island, Keith Clanton moved to second on the UCF career blocks list
? Clanton has 127 career swats and is tied with Paul Reed (2001-02) for second on the school register
? Ken Leeks, who played at UCF from 1988-92, is first on the list with 141 blocks
? This season, Clanton has registered 22 blocks and ranks fifth in Conference USA in blocks per game at 1.7
Point Blank
? Keith Clanton is not the only Knight approaching the 1,000-career point mark as Marcus Jordan needs 51 points to hit the milestone
? Jordan has appeared in 76 career contests and has 949 points
Welcome Back
? A.J. Rompza made an immediate impact in his season debut last Friday vs. Rhode Island as the senior started and totaled seven points, a game-high six assists, three steals and three boards in 30 minutes of action
? The point guard missed UCF's first 12 games of the year while serving an NCAA-mandated suspension
The Dish
? During the win over Rhode Island, Rompza became just the third player in school history to record at least 400 career assists
? Rompza, who has 400 assists as a Knight, passed Al Miller (397, 1999-03) to move to third on the program register
? Sinua Phillips (1990-94) is first on the list with 531 assists
? Rompza has recorded at least 100 assists each year during his career
Up Next
? The Knights will hit the road to face East Carolina in Greenville Saturday
? UCF has an 11-5 edge in the all-time series with the Pirates, but East Carolina has won four-straight, including three contests last year as the squads met in Orlando, Greenville and at the Conference USA Championship in El Paso, Texas
? The Knights and Pirates will also play in Orlando on Feb. 18