Feb. 24, 2012
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By Doug Richards
UCFAthletics.com
| UCF vs. UTEP | |
| Date | Saturday, Feb. 25 |
| Time | 8 p.m. |
| Location | Orlando, Fla. | UCF Arena |
| Television | CBS Sports Network |
| Radio | UCF IMG Sports Network - 740 AM |
| Tickets | Single-Game |
| Internet Coverage | Video/Audio | |
| Game Notes | UCF Notes |
| Social Media | @UCF_MBasketball | Facebook |
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - The UCF men's basketball team is back home this weekend to host UTEP Saturday at the UCF Arena. The Conference USA contest will begin at 8 p.m.
The Knights (19-8, 8-5 C-USA) are seeking to record back-to-back 20-victory campaigns for only the third time since the school moved to the Division I level in 1984. UCF is currently fourth in the C-USA standings, and the top-four squads at the end of the regular season receive a first-round bye at the league championship in March.
The game will serve as UCF's penultimate home contest of the season. Tickets for the contest are available at all Ticketmaster outlets and by visiting UCFAthletics.com. On Saturday, fans can purchase tickets at the UCF Arena box office. UCF students are admitted free to all home games.
The Knights have been led by junior forward Keith Clanton (Orlando, Fla.), who averaged 17.0 points and 7.0 rebounds in the team's last two games. On Wednesday at Rice, he led all players with 18 points and seven rebounds. UCF is 14-1 at home in 2011-12.
UTEP (14-13, 7-6 C-USA) is riding a season-high four-game winning streak. In their last two games, the Miners posted victories over the league's top-two teams - Memphis and Southern Miss. On Wednesday, they defeated Southern Miss, 76-68, in double overtime.
CBS Sports Network will televise the game live nationally. Dave Ryan is slated to handle the play-by-play duties, and will be joined by Pete Gillen on the broadcast.
The game will air on the UCF IMG Sports Network and its flagship station, 740 The Game in Orlando. Marc Daniels will have the call and will be joined by former UCF guard Taylor Young. Live statistics will be available at UCFAthletics.com.
Series History
? UCF and UTEP and have met eight times and each team has won four contests
? The Knights posted a big 74-68 win over the Miners in El Paso last year
? UCF had a 39-25 advantage at the break and led by as many as 19 points in the second half ? Keith Clanton paced UCF with 15 points and 13 rebounds
? The game was played on Feb. 21, 2011, and was moved to that date after a winter storm hit El Paso on Feb. 2
? The victory snapped a three-game losing skid for the Knights against UTEP
? In the last series meeting in Orlando, the Miners rolled to a 96-59 win over UCF on Jan. 23, 2010, behind 39 points from Randy Culpepper
? Clanton is averaging 14.7 points and 8.3 rebounds in three career games vs. UTEP
Last Time Out
? UCF shot 70.4 percent in the first half and led by 12 points at the break Wednesday at Rice, but the Knights were unable to hold on to the lead as the Owls rallied for an 83-74 victory
? Rice outscored UCF 46-25 after the break, when it shot 59.3 percent overall and forced 10 UCF turnovers
? Keith Clanton totaled a game-high 18 points, with 16 coming in the opening stanza, and Isaiah Sykes chipped in with 15 points for the Knights
20-20 Vision
? The Knights need one win to post their second-consecutive 20-victory campaign under Donnie Jones
? UCF went 21-12 a year ago, and recorded 19 of the victories during the regular season
? This year, UCF is seeking only the seventh 20-win campaign since the school moved to the Division I level in 1984-85
? The Knights have not had back-to-back 20-victory seasons since 2002-03 - 2004-05, a three-year stretch
Winning Time
? With three league games remaining, UCF has already topped its Conference USA victory total from a year ago as the Knights are 8-5 in the conference
? UCF went 6-10 against C-USA foes in 2010-11 and also went 6-10 in the league in 2009-10
Taking Down Tourney Teams
? This season, UCF has defeated four squads that participated in the 2011 NCAA Tournament
? In non-league play, the Knights topped defending national champion and No. 4 UConn and Old Dominion
? UCF has defeated both Memphis and UAB in C-USA action
? The team also owns wins over 2011 NIT squads College of Charleston and Bethune-Cookman
Coming Home
? After playing Rice in Houston Wednesday, the Knights are happy to be back home as the squad is 14-1 at the UCF Arena this season
? With a win over the Miners, UCF can match its top home victory total in program history as the 2010-11 (15-4) and 2006-07 (15-1) squads each won 15 contests in Orlando
Bouncing Back
? Despite the disappointing loss at Rice Wednesday, the Knights should be playing with confidence against UTEP
? The Knights have bounced back after their setbacks this season as the squad is 6-1 following a loss
New Balance
? UCF has enjoyed great balance offensively as three Knights - Keith Clanton (15.1), Marcus Jordan (14.7) and Isaiah Sykes (12.1) - are averaging double-digits in scoring
? The Knights have not had three players finish a campaign averaging double figures in points since 2007-08: Jermaine Taylor (20.8), Dave Noel (13.3) and Mike O'Donnell (11.9)
Well-Rounded
? Keith Clanton has exhibited a well-rounded game this year
? The 6-foot-9 junior is among the top-15 overall in Conference USA in five statistical categories: scoring (15.1/7th), rebounds (8.7/5th), field goal percentage (46.3/14th), blocks (2.0/3rd) and steals (1.2/12th)
Getting Defensive
? A candidate for the Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year award, Keith Clanton is the all-time leading shot blocker in UCF history with 158 career swats
? Clanton is averaging 2.2 blocks per game in C-USA contests to lead the league
? On Wednesday at Rice, he blocked four shots, with most of the swats coming on Rice's 7-foot-2 center Omar Oraby
? Clanton has 53 blocks on the year, good for sixth on the school single-season swats register
Care Package
? A.J. Rompza leads Conference USA with a 3.0 assist-turnover ratio in league play
? The senior has recorded 51 assists in conference contests with only 17 turnovers
It Takes a Thief
? A.J. Rompza is averaging 2.8 steals in Conference USA games to lead the league
? Rompza ranks third in UCF history with 301 career steals and is tied for ninth in C-USA history in the category
? Last year, Rompza totaled 34 steals in 31 games
? In 2011-12, the Chicago native has 40 steals in only 15 contests
Welcome Freshman
? Kasey Wilson has earned some minutes in UCF's last three outings and has shown that he is worthy of the playing time
? The freshman averaged 10.3 points and 4.3 boards in only 13.3 minutes per game against Southern Miss, East Carolina and Rice
? The forward shot 10-of-13 (76.9 percent) overall and 4-of-6 (66.7 percent) from 3-point range in the contests
? At Rice Wednesday, he logged 16 minutes and scored 13 points and grabbed four rebounds on 4-of-5 shooting from the field and 2-of-3 shooting from deep
? Wilson is averaging 2.9 points and 1.9 rebounds in 6.1 minutes on the season, and has increased those numbers to 3.7 points and 2.1 rebounds in 7.3 minutes in league games
? In 11 conference contests, Wilson has shot 66.7 percent overall
Up Next
? UCF plays at Memphis Tuesday evening in a 9 p.m. Eastern contest that will air on CSS and Bright House Sports Network
? On Jan. 18, the Knights picked up their first win over Memphis, 68-67, at the UCF Arena