Feb. 27, 2012
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By Doug Richards
UCFAthletics.com
| UCF at Memphis | |
| Date | Tuesday, Feb. 28 |
| Time | 9 p.m. Eastern |
| Location | Memphis, Tenn. | FedEx Forum |
| Television | CSS/Bright House Sports Network |
| Radio | UCF IMG Sports Network - 740 AM |
| Internet Coverage | Video/Audio | |
| Game Notes | UCF Notes |
| Social Media | @UCF_MBasketball | Facebook |
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Having secured its 20th victory of the season over the weekend, the UCF men's basketball team has turned its attention to its Conference USA showdown at first-place Memphis Tuesday. Tipoff is set for 9 p.m. Eastern at FedEx Forum.
The game will be televised throughout the southeast on CSS and in central Florida on Bright House Sports Network.
UCF (20-8, 9-5 C-USA) has now recorded back-to-back 20-win campaigns under head coach Donnie Jones. With two regular-season games remaining, the Knights are fourth in the league standings, with the top-four squads in C-USA earning a first-round bye at the conference championship, which will be held in Memphis.
UCF defeated Memphis (21-8, 11-3) for the first time in January behind 23 points and eight boards from junior forward Keith Clanton (Orlando, Fla.) at the UCF Arena. Memphis has won five of its last six games and is 14-2 at home this season. The Tigers are led by C-USA Player of the Year candidate Will Barton, who is averaging a league-high 18.1 points per game.
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 from the FedEx Forum and pregame coverage begins at 8:30 p.m. Live audio and statistics will be available at UCFAthletics.com.
After meeting the Tigers, UCF will return home to conclude its regular season Saturday against UAB at 7 p.m. at the UCF Arena.
Series History
? Memphis is 10-1 all-time against the Knights, but UCF won the series matchup earlier this year, 68-67, in Orlando on Jan. 18
? Keith Clanton recorded a traditional 3-point play with four seconds remaining to give the Knights the win
? The game was played in front of 8,734 fans, the fifth-largest crowd in UCF Arena history
? UCF led by as many as 13 points in the second half, but the Tigers grabbed a 67-65 edge with 43 seconds remaining when Joe Jackson drained a long 3-pointer with the shot clock winding down
? Clanton led UCF with 23 points and eight rebounds, and Marcus Jordan added 20 points in the victory
? The Knights won despite Memphis shooting 51.0 percent overall and Will Barton scoring 24 points
? UCF is 0-7 all-time at Memphis, including a 0-4 mark against the Tigers at FedEx Forum
? Along with Tulsa's Reynolds Center, the FedEx Forum is one of two C-USA arenas that the Knights have never won at, although UCF did top East Carolina at the venue during the 2006 C-USA Championship
? Both UCF and the Tigers will join the BIG EAST prior to the 2013-14 campaign alongside fellow C-USA programs Houston and SMU
Last Time Out
? Isaiah Sykes recorded a game-high 23 points and 11 rebounds to help UCF to a 63-45 victory over visiting UTEP Saturday and snap the Miners' four-game winning streak
? The Knights never trailed during the contest and used a 7-0 run midway through the second half to pull away from the Miners after the game was tied at 29
? UCF outscored UTEP 38-22 after the break
? The Knights finished with a 37-27 edge on the glass and grabbed 18 offensive boards
? UCF committed only three turnovers, good for third on the Conference USA single-game register
? In their previous contest, a loss at Rice last Wednesday, the Knights had 18 turnovers
20-20
? The Knights have already recorded 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 (two wins came during the postseason College Basketball Invitational)
? On Saturday against UTEP, UCF secured only its seventh 20-win season since the school moved to the Division I level in 1984
A Season of Firsts
? The season has been filled with firsts for the Knights as the team has:
- defeated a top-10 squad - No. 4 UConn - for the first time
- defeated Memphis for the first time
- topped UAB for the first time
Winning Time
? With two league games remaining, UCF has already topped its Conference USA victory total from a year ago as the Knights are 9-5 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
? UCF's nine C-USA wins are the most for the program since going 9-7 in 2007-08
Getting to the Glass
? When UCF finished with a 37-27 edge on the glass Saturday vs. UTEP, it marked the 10th time in Conference USA play this year that the Knights posted a rebounding advantage
? In league games, UCF is second in the conference with 36.5 rebounds per outing
? A season ago, the Knights ranked sixth with 33.4 boards per game
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 six statistical categories: scoring (15.0/7th), rebounds (8.6/5th), field goal percentage (46.0/14th), blocks (1.9/3rd), steals (1.2/10th) and minutes (33.6/9th)
Major Minutes
? Marcus Jordan, who is second in Conference USA in minutes per game (36.3), hardly left the floor in UCF's last six games as he averaged 37.8 minutes
? He played all 40 minutes Saturday vs. UTEP and logged 39 minutes at Rice last Wednesday
Care Package
? A.J. Rompza leads Conference USA with a 3.2 assist-turnover ratio in league play
? The senior has recorded 55 assists in conference contests with only 17 turnovers
Fab Freshman
? Kasey Wilson has earned some playing time of late and is proving that he is worthy of the minutes
? The freshman forward, who made his first career start Saturday vs. UTEP, averaged 8.8 points and 4.3 rebounds in 14.3 minutes a contest in the Knights' last four games
? He shot 11-of-17 (64.7 percent) against Southern Miss, East Carolina, Rice and UTEP
? In UCF's previous 10 league contests, he saw time in eight games and averaged only 1.3 points and 1.3 rebounds in 5.0 minutes per outing
Up Next
? UCF will conclude its regular season Saturday at home against UAB
? The Knights will honor seniors P.J. Gaynor and A.J. Rompza before both play in their final home contest