ORLANDO (UCFKnights.com) –Champions of the Myrtle Beach Invitational, the UCF men’s basketball team has turned the page and is set to return to non-conference action this weekend. The Knights (4-1) will host Northern Kentucky (6-0) Saturday, 6 p.m., at CFE Arena.
GAME INFO
Date: Saturday, Nov. 24
Time: 6 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN3
Radio: 96.9 FM/740 AM The Game
Live Stats: https://ucfknights.co/2S9C24S
Through five games of the season, UCF has already taken down a number of teams with potential to win its conference in 2018-19, defeating MAAC favorite Rider in the season opener, topping last year’s Big West Champion Cal State Fullerton in the first round in Myrtle Beach, and then winning against Conference USA favorite Western Kentucky in the finals.
The Knights will aim to top another Saturday evening when they host Northern Kentucky. The Norse went 22-10 overall last season and 15-3 during Horizon League play to win the regular season conference championship. NKU lost in the first round of the NIT to Louisville.
Similar success has followed Northern Kentucky to start the 2018-19 campaign, as the Norse are 6-0 with wins over Northern Illinois, UNC Asheville, Manhattan and Coastal Carolina. Drew McDonald, who was picked as the Horizon League Preseason Player of the Year, is currently averaging 19.3 points and 10.2 rebounds per game.
UCF hosts the Norse in the first of two home games before heading back on the road. The Knights will continue the homestand Thursday, Nov. 29 when they host Alabama at 7 p.m. UCF then makes its way to Missouri for a Dec. 2 contest against the Tigers.
NOTES TO KNOW
- UCF has won three games in a row and aims for a fourth straight on Saturday, which would be the team’s longest win streak since winning five in a row from Dec. 3 to Dec. 21 last season.
- Aubrey Dawkins has scored in double figures in his first five games as a Knight, the first UCF player to do so in the program’s Division 1 era.
- Dawkins was named the Myrtle Beach Invitational MVP and the American Athletic Conference Player of the Week after leading the Knights to the championship with 21 points and five three-pointers against Western Kentucky.
- Tacko Fall was named to the Myrtle Beach Invitational after scoring in double figures in all three victories, averaging three blocks per contest.
- Through five games, Terrell Allen has totaled 26 assists to just four turnovers, an assist-to-turnover ratio that ranks third in The American.
- UCF and Northern Kentucky have never played in men’s basketball.
CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE GAME NOTES – UCF VS. NKU
TICKETS FOR 2018-19
Fans excited for the 2018-19 UCF men's basketball season can purchase tickets today by calling (407) 823-1000 or online here: https://ucfknights.co/mbb1819tix.