Feb. 3, 2012
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By Doug Richards
UCFAthletics.com
| UCF at SMU | |
| Date | Saturday, Feb. 4 |
| Time | 3 p.m. Eastern |
| Location | Dallas, Texas | Moody Coliseum |
| Television | None |
| Radio | UCF IMG Sports Network - 740 AM |
| Internet Coverage | Video/Audio | |
| Game Notes | UCF Notes |
| Social Media | @UCF_MBasketball | Facebook |
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - The UCF men's basketball team will return to Conference USA play Saturday when the Knights face host SMU in Dallas. The contest from Moody Coliseum will begin at 3 p.m. Eastern.
The game will air on the UCF IMG Sports Network and its flagship station, 740 The Game in Orlando with Marc Daniels on the call.
UCF (16-6, 5-3 C-USA) can match its league win total from a year ago with a victory over the Mustangs. The Knights will be playing for the first time since cruising to an 84-69 non-league win over visiting Palm Beach Atlantic Monday. UCF is led by juniors Keith Clanton (Orlando, Fla.) and Marcus Jordan (Chicago, Ill.), who are both averaging 15.5 points per game.
SMU is 10-12 overall and 2-6 in league games. Robert Nyakundi leads the Mustangs in scoring at 15.5 points per game. UCF will be looking for its first win at SMU as the Knights are 0-3 all-time in Dallas.
Live audio, video and statistics will be available at UCFAthletics.com. After meeting the Mustangs, UCF will return home and host Marshall Wednesday at the UCF Arena.
Series History
? The Knights have a 4-3 edge in the all-time series with SMU, but the Mustangs have won all three series matchups in Dallas
? The teams met a year ago in Orlando and UCF used a dominating second half to record a 51-48 win on senior night
? SMU led 23-16 at halftime but UCF grabbed the lead with a 25-4 run in the second half
? A.J. Rompza scored all 10 of his points after intermission and UCF held on for the win when Jeremiah Samarrippas missed the potential game-tying 3-pointer with one second to play
? In the last series meeting in Dallas, SMU rolled to a 65-43 win on Jan. 27, 2010
? Donnie Jones' teams are 4-0 against the Mustangs as he went 3-0 as the head coach at Marshall vs. SMU
? SMU is one of three Conference USA programs that the Knights have never defeated on the road, joining Memphis and Tulsa
? UCF and SMU will continue to meet in the future as both programs are headed to the BIG EAST for the 2013-14 season
Last Time Out
? UCF never trailed Monday as the Knights cruised to an 89-64 non-conference victory over Palm Beach Atlantic at the UCF Arena
? The Knights shot 47.8 percent overall for the game and led 43-25 at the half
? Four Knights finished with double digits in scoring, led by Marcus Jordan with 17 points and Kasey Wilson with a season-best 15 points
? The game marked the first time since 2006, when the host Knights lost to South Dakota State, that UCF played a non-league foe after C-USA play began
The Match Game
? The Knights, who are 5-3 in league play, need one victory to match their Conference USA win total from a year ago
? UCF went 6-10 against C-USA foes in 2010-11
Lone Star Status
? The game at SMU is the first of two contests that the Knights will play in Texas this season
? UCF will play at Rice on Feb. 22
? A year ago, the Knights played three games (but made four trips) to Texas as the team faced Houston and UTEP in regular-season contests and met East Carolina at the Conference USA Championship in El Paso
Road Tripping
? UCF will be looking for its third road victory of the season
? Both of its road wins have come in Conference USA play as the Knights defeated East Carolina and UAB
? A year ago, UCF was 2-6 in league action away from Orlando
? After meeting SMU, UCF has road games remaining at Southern Miss, Rice and Memphis
A Good Day
? UCF is 3-1 in day games this season
? The Knights have had success in day contests on the road during league play, having defeated UAB on Jan. 21 in a game that started at 1 p.m. Central
A Better Month
? The Knights had a productive January, going 6-3 during the month
? The successful month was a great improvement from January 2011 when UCF went 1-6
? This season, UCF opened Conference USA play with three-straight wins
? Last year, the Knights won their first league contest before dropping eight-straight games
No Foul Mood
? The Knights are doing a solid job this season getting to the free-throw line and keeping their opponents off the charity stripe
? UCF has shot 120 more free throws than its opponents
The Score
? Keith Clanton has led the Knights in scoring in five of eight Conference USA contests this season
? The junior is averaging 15.6 points in league games, good for sixth in the conference
? Last year, Clanton averaged 12.2 points in conference outings
It Takes A Thief
? A.J. Rompza is averaging 3.5 steals in Conference USA games to lead the league
? He has 28 steals in eight contests and no other league player has more than 18 steals in league games
? The senior ranks third in program history with 193 career steals
? A native of Chicago, Rompza needs only one steal to enter the Conference USA career steals top-10 list
Up Next
? UCF will head back to Orlando to host Marshall Wednesday in a contest that will be televised on Bright House Sports Network
? The teams met in Huntington on Jan. 14 and the Thundering Herd escaped with a 65-64 victory in a thrilling contest in front of 8,379 spectators at the Cam Henderson Center
? The Knights had the chance to win the game with four seconds left, but Marcus Jordan's layup attempt came up short
? The contest featured 13 lead changes and seven ties