ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – UCF head men's basketball coach Johnny Dawkins revealed the 2016-17 schedule on Thursday afternoon. The Knights' 30-game slate is highlighted by a 12-game non-conference schedule and 18 American Athletic Conference games, including matchups against NCAA qualifiers Cincinnati, UConn, Temple and Tulsa.
"Despite getting a late start in the scheduling process, I believe we have pieced together a competitive schedule for this upcoming season," said Dawkins, who was hired in late March. "We inherited a handful of games, which limited us in what we could do this season, but our non-conference will help prepare us for conference play. Moving forward, I want to bring more high-profile programs to CFE Arena."
The Knights will play seven of their 12 non-conference games at CFE Arena, including the season opener against Nicholls State on Nov. 14. UCF will also welcome in-state opponents Stetson (Nov. 30) and Bethune-Cookman (Dec. 21). Other opponents venturing to Orlando will be Seattle (Nov. 26), Maryland-Eastern Shore (Dec. 10), Penn (Dec. 12) and Miami (Ohio) (Dec. 18).
Following UCF's season opener, the Knights will travel to Charleston, S.C., for the 2016 Gildan Charleston Classic. They will face Mississippi State in the opening round on Nov. 17 and then take on either Boise State or Charleston the following day. UCF will close out the tournament on Nov. 20 against an opponent to be determined. Other teams participating in the tournament include NCAA National Champion Villanova, UTEP, Wake Forest and Western Michigan.
The Knights will only have two true road games prior to American Athletic Conference action, traveling to Massachusetts on Dec. 3 and then to Washington, D.C., on Dec. 15 to take on defending NIT Champion George Washington.
League play begins on Dec. 28 in New Orleans, Louisiana, against Tulane. UCF's league home opener is slated for New Year's Eve at 4 p.m. versus the 2015-16 AAC regular season champion Temple.
"With playing in one of the premier conferences in the country, we have to bring our best every night if we want to be successful," said Dawkins.
With having 11 league opponents, the Knights will play eight of the 11 AAC programs twice, while competing against two schools only once each - one at home and one away. This season, UCF will only take on SMU at home and Tulane on the road. The Black & Gold are slated to play the rest of The American - Cincinnati, UConn, East Carolina, Houston, Memphis, USF, Temple and Tulsa - both on the road and at CFE Arena in Orlando.
Twenty-eight of the Knights' 30 games will be broadcast live nationally by ESPN's family of networks, CBS Sports Network or the American Digital Network. Broadcast information for UCF's two non-conference road games against UMass and George Washington have yet to be announced.
The American Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Championship will be held March 9-12, 2017 (Thursday-Sunday) at the XL Center in Hartford, Connecticut.
The 2016-17 season will be the first of the Dawkins era after being named the Knights' head coach on March 23. The former Duke great and 1986 Naismith Player of the Year comes to Orlando after an eight-year stint at Stanford, where he led the Cardinal to five postseason appearances, including NCAA Sweet Sixteen appearance in 2014 and four 20-win seasons.
Season tickets are currently available starting at $99. A five-month payment plan is also available starting at $20 per month. Tickets may be purchased online at UCFKnights.com or by calling the UCF ticket office at (407) 823-1000. For premium seating options, please contact the GKC office at (407) 823-2086.
