UCF looks to extend a pair of lengthy home-court winning streaks on Saturday evening when the Knights play Jacksonville in the final nonconference game of the regular season for both schools.
UCF (8-2) owns a 7-0 mark at Addition Financial Arena this season, the second-longest home winning streak under head coach Johnny Dawkins. The Knights’ string of regular-season home victories against nonconference opponents stands at 10 dating back to last season.
With injured guards Jaylin Sellers and Mikey Williams sidelined for the first 10 games, UCF has coupled versatility on offense with a knack for creating steals at the defensive end. One bright spot centers around 7-foot-2 freshman Moustapha Thiam.
The Senegal native shot 48.1 percent from the floor over UCF’s past three games while averaging 11.7 points, 8.0 rebounds and 4.7 blocks. Thiam, who has 25 blocks across nine games, posted a career-high 14 points during UCF’s 88-75 win over Tulsa on Dec. 14 in Sunrise, Fla.
“I knew Moustapha, as long as he was, could block and change shots,” Dawkins said. “I think he’s a really good offensive player. He’s capable of scoring in the low post; he’s capable of scoring facing up.”
Jacksonville (6-5) is coming off a 60-52 win over visiting East Tennessee State on Dec. 14.
Atlantic Sun Conference Preseason Player of the Year Robert McCray V committed eight turnovers but otherwise filled the stat sheet with 22 points, five rebounds, five steals, four blocks and three assists. McCray leads the Dolphins in scoring at 15.6 points per game.
Coach Jordan Mincy liked the results against East Tennessee State, as Dayton transfer Zimi Nwokeji (15 points) and 6-9 sophomore Donovan Rivers moved into the starting lineup.
“We wanted to be more explosive,” Mincy said. “We understood (East Tennessee State) was going to be a challenge to line up against. We knew they could rebound. But we felt like some things were getting stale, so we wanted to shake it up to get to an elite level.”
Jacksonville is 1-4 in true road games. The Dolphins overcame a 10-point halftime deficit to win at Virginia Tech 74-64 on Nov. 20.
–Field Level Media
