ORLANDO – The final week of the regular season includes a pair of home games for the UCF men's basketball team, beginning with Wednesday night's matchup against SMU. The Knights and the Mustangs are set to square off at 7 p.m. with coverage on ESPN3 and FM 96.9 The Game.
The Knights (14-14, 5-11) aim to snap a three-game losing skid Wednesday night, while the Mustangs (19-9, 9-7) look to rebound after giving up a 24-point second half lead in a home loss to Wichita State on Sunday.
When UCF and SMU met in Dallas earlier this season, the Knights allowed the Mustangs to shoot 54.2 percent from 3-point range in an 81-74 defeat. UCF looks to even the season series and pull the all-time series back within two games, as SMU currently leads 12-9.
Following Wednesday night's contest, UCF will close out the regular season on Sunday afternoon, hosting ECU at 2 p.m. for Senior Day.
GAME INFO
Date: Wednesday, March 4
Time: 7 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN3
Radio: FM 96.9 The Game
SETTING THE SCENE
- After starting the season 9-2, the UCF men's basketball team has gone just 5-11 during league play and holds an overall mark of 14-14 going into the final week of the regular season.
- The Knights currently stand in 10th place in the league but have wins over first-place Tulsa and third-place Cincinnati.
- UCF is one game behind Temple and South Florida for eighth place and aims to move up the league standings by evening the season series with SMU on Wednesday.
LOST THREE IN A ROW
- Following a road win at Cincinnati on Feb. 19, the Knights have lost three in a row, starting with a home loss to Tulane and following with road defeats at UConn and Tulsa.
- UCF is getting outrebounded by 3.7 boards per game and turning the ball over 18.0 times per game during the stretch.
- The Knights are getting outscored by 9.3 points per game and allowing opponents to shoot 45.5 percent from the field during the recent losing streak.
SHOWDOWN WITH SMU
- SMU holds a 12-11 advantage over UCF in the all-time series, which dates to 2006, when the Mustangs won 77-55 in Dallas
- UCF lost eight in a row in the series from Jan. 18, 2014 to Dec. 27, 2017, before winning three straight games from Feb. 17, 2018 to Feb. 24, 2019.
- SMU snapped that streak earlier this season, winning 81-74 back on Jan. 8.
- The Mustangs shot 54.2 percent from 3-point range in that win, led by Kendric Davis, who had a game-high 22 on 3-of-3 shooting from beyond the arc.
- Collin Smith and Ceasar DeJesus led the Knights in that loss, each putting up 19 points.
GREEN GOING WILD
- Darin Green Jr.'s 26 points against Tulsa were the most for any Knight this season.
- His six 3-pointers were also a team-high this season and the most since Aubrey Dawkins knocked down six at Temple on March 9, 2019.
- It was the highest scoring game for any UCF freshman since B.J. Taylor had 33 his freshman year against Tulane on Jan. 14, 2015.
- Green is now third on the team in scoring with 9.5 points per game and leads The American with a 40.1 percent mark from 3-point range.
- Over the last 10 games he is leading the Knights in scoring with 12.9 points per game and shooting 49.2 percent from beyond the arc.
- Green's 59 threes made make him just eight shy of tying and nine away from breaking the UCF freshman record for 3-pointers made in a season (Eric Riggs, 67; 1995-96).
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