UCF Knights basketball: 5 trends entering non-conference finale against Jacksonville

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ORLANDO — Perhaps overshadowed around town by the return of Scott Frost, UCF’s men’s basketball team prepares to wrap its non-conference portion of the schedule Saturday before embarking on a 2½-month battle through the sport’s deepest league, the Big 12.

The Knights (8-2) sandwiched their Greenbrier Tip-Off defeats to Wisconsin and LSU, the latter in a triple-overtime thriller, with four-game winning streaks. UCF pulled away from former conference foe Tulsa last weekend for an 88-75 victory in Sunrise.

Next up, UCF welcomes Jacksonville (6-5) to Addition Financial Arena for a 6 p.m. tipoff.

Ahead of the Sunshine State showdown, let’s take a look at five trends currently defining UCF’s basketball season.

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Darius Johnson stands among Big 12’s best guards

Nov 12, 2024; Orlando, Florida, USA; UCF Knights guard Darius Johnson (3) is fouled by Florida Atlantic Owls guard Ken Evans Jr. (0) during the second half at Addition Financial Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mike Watters-Imagn Images

A UCF graduate as of Saturday, senior guard Darius Johnson is among the Big 12’s top performers at both ends of the floor. He tops the conference in minutes played (35.8) and steals (2.9 per game), is seventh in 3-point shooting (45.2%), 11th at the free-throw line (80%), 12th in assists (4.8) and tied for 15th in scoring (14.8).

Johnson has topped 20 points four times this season, most recently against Milwaukee on Nov. 27. His eight 3-pointers on the night were the second-most for any player during Johnny Dawkins’ tenure as head coach.

Earlier this season, Johnson became only the 21st player in UCF history to top the 1,000-point mark in his career.

“It means a lot, an accolade like that is hard to do nowadays,” Johnson said after the Knights’ Nov. 19 home win against Tennessee Tech. “To be able to leave my mark on a program and in school history is big.”

UCF offsetting shooting woes with elite free-throw…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/ucf-knights-basketball-5-trends-100510236.html

Author : Daytona Beach News-Journal

Publish date : 2024-12-19 10:05:00

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