UConn-UCF Game Preview

The University of Connecticut men’s basketball team looks for its first American Athletic Conference victory of the season when it takes on UCF this Saturday, Jan. 11th at 6 p.m. at Harry A. Gampel Pavilion. The game can be seen on ESPNU and will be broadcasted live on the UConn IMG Sports Radio Network.

The Huskies (12-3) returned to the win column with a 61-56 victory over Harvard on Wednesday night in Storrs, behind an 18-point performance from senior guard Shabazz Napier (Roxbury, Mass.). Napier moved into sole possession of 17th place on UConn’s all-time scoring list and has tallied 1,481 points during his four year career. UConn wrapped up its regular season non-conference portion of its schedule with a 12-1 record and grabbed its 100th win against teams from the Ivy League.

Several Huskies have found themselves in the national spotlight as Napier currently ranks 30th in the country with 5.7 assists per game while freshman Amida Brimah (Accra, Ghana) holds 28th place with 2.8 blocks per game. As a team, the Huskies are No. 7 in the nation with a .422 three-point field goal percentage.

The Knights and Huskies have met just four times in the past, with the most recent matchup coming in the 2011-12 season. Overall, the Huskies sport a 3-1 record over their new conference foes, including one victory at home in the 2009-10 season.

UCF is coming off its third consecutive 20-win season as it joins The American and is led by fourth-year head coach Donnie Jones. On the offensive side of the ball, senior guard Isiah Sykes averages 15 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game. As a team, the Knights boast a +7.1 rebounding margin and are shooting .470 from the field.
There will be a short ceremony prior to the start of the game to mark the inaugural season of The American. A special ceremonial ball will handed to the game’s referees and a photo will be taken with each team’s head coach, captains and team administrators.

Reprinted with permission from UConnHuskies.com

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