Final: Tulane 82, UCF 67 🏀
- By Brandon
- The Dungeon - Knights Only
- 93 Replies
UCF wraps up the regular season this week with a pair of road games at Tulane (Thursday) and Tulsa (Sunday). With a win against the Green Wave, the Knights can lock up a top-five seed and first-round bye in next week's AAC Tournament in Fort Worth.
Though winning games on the road is never easy, Tulane and Tulsa are winnable. If UCF wins both, and then can win their opening game in next week's conference tournament, that would put the Knights at 20 wins. That could be what it takes to strengthen NIT chances. NITology currently has UCF as the final No. 5 seed. That's likely where you need to remain, probably no lower as the No. 6 seed range, as some of the bottom spots will get eaten by automatic bids that occur when a regular season champion in a one-bid league loses in their conference tournament.
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We just caught up with Johnny Dawkins, Darius Perry and Isaiah Adams. Video and recap of their interviews:
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Johnny Dawkins
Coach Johnny Dawkins said the few extra days off have been good. UCF will go eight days between last Wednesday's home game vs. Cincinnati and Thursday's game at Tulane.
"It's given our guys a chance to heal up some," Dawkins said. "A chance to continue to sharpen their skills and some of the things we want to to do defensively, to lock in on that."
Practices towards the end of the season are shorter to preserve their bodies, but still intense. From my observation, I know the Monday and Tuesday practices this week ended probably 35-45 minutes earlier than usual.
On UCF's struggles on the road (2-5 in the AAC):
"One, we've played some good teams and we didn't shoot the ball well," Dawkins said. "We played some good teams, so it's going to be competitive. We have to shoot the ball better on the road and defend better. It's really that simple."
UCF and Tulane are currently knotted up in the AAC standings, tied for fifth place with identical 9-7 records. A UCF victory would clinch the fifth-place spot and first-round bye in the conference tournament.
"All the games are important for us. Thursday is no exception. Our record will be judged on all the games we play. We have to do our best. It's a good opportunity to play against a good Tulane team. They've had a good conference schedule. We're excited to compete."
UCF will stay on the road for these last two games, spending Friday in New Orleans before flying out to Tulsa on Saturday.
"We have to look at it as a business trip," Dawkins said. "We have to go out there and stay focused on what we're trying to do. Stay locked in. We're in March now. It's an exciting time to be playing. Everyone is excited about this time of year. Our players are as well."
UCF defeated Tulane 68-66 at home on Jan. 22
"They're a very good basketball team with offensive firepower," Dawkins said of Tulane. "They have guys that are very versatile. They're probably one of the most unorthodox teams that we'll play in our conference. Their bigs are like guards. Their guards are very skilled with (Jalen) Cook and (Jaylen) Forbes being two terrific scorers. (Kevin) Cross is one of the best bigs in terms of handling the basketball. He's probably has more assists than any big in our conference. He's like a point center. They're a very difficult team to scout and defend because of their versatility."
Sophomore Isaiah Adams, who had struggled for much of the season, showed a resurgence last time out against Cincinnati by scoring 12 points with two assists, a block and a steal during 14 minutes of play.
"I think his confidence is good," Dawkins said. "He's had a good week of practice. He's continuing to build on that momentum. That's exciting to see. He's getting back to the Isaiah we saw last season. It's a process for some young players. You could say he's had a tough sophomore year, but you take it one game at a time. The last game was terrific and he was getting back to who he is. We know how good he's capable of being and we're going to push him in that direction."
I asked about the status of Brandon Mahan. He was still using crutches last week.
"He's getting better," Dawkins said. "It's still a process for Brandon. He's still not able to go. He's improving. It's just a matter of him healing."
In a follow-up, Dawkins was asked about the possibility of Mahan returning in time for the conference tournament. He was vague, but it didn't seem promising.
"We'll see. The main thing is he's healthy and he heals properly. There's no real rush on that. We're more concerned about the young man and his overall wellbeing. We want to see him continue to heal and we'll see where he is."
On the UCF women winning the American regular season championship:
"I was so proud of them. What a great accomplishment. Coach Abe and her staff have done an amazing job. Excited for them in our conference tournament and NCAA Tournament. They're deserving of winning a championship and they have."
And lastly, Dawkins' former coach and mentor, Mike Krzyzewski, will coach his final home game this Saturday against North Carolina.
"Its an amazing opportunity to see Coach K's last game in Cameron, and it's against our rival North Carolina," Dawkins said. "It doesn't get much bigger than that in sports. It's going to be a great atmosphere. An emotional day as well. He's done an amazing things in our game of basketball. I think it's a great way for him to leave the game."
Darius Perry
The UCF student section had been chanting "Scary Perry" at times this season, particularly last week during his final home game. I asked Darius if he recalled the origin of that and he said he first heard it during the Feb. 3 game vs. South Florida.
"It was cool to hear. It was funny to me... And being able to go out like that in my last home game, that was pretty fun."
Darius said they have to make sure they bring their own energy for these final two games.
He knows Tulane will be fired up, especially since the Green Wave lost to UCF earlier this season.
"It's very important" to beat Tulane to lock up the first-round bye but the circumstances don't really matter because the objective is always to "go 1-0."
In regards to Tulane, they need to keep them out of the lane, stop them from getting out in transition and make them a half-court team.
UCF will be on the road for an extended period of time as they're going straight to Tulsa after playing Tulane. They'll then come home for a couple days before heading out to the conference tournament. I asked about the impact of that. Darius said he's used to it being an older player.
Isaiah Adams
Adams starts off by talking about the recent Cincinnati game in which he scored 12 points off the bench.
"I feel like it was a good game for me, to know I can produce on the floor," Adams said. "It was a good reminder that I can really come out here and play. I look to continue to do that, especially now that it's late in the season."
Adams said it was difficult dealing with the fact he wasn't producing earlier in the season. He said all his teammates were supportive. Isaiah said he's trying to not to rush anything. He said Darius Perry, Mbacke and Mahan in particularly have been supportive.
Why is Tulane tough?
"They play a little different," Adams said. "It's more free form, like a pickup game. You've got to make plays out there. It's nothing you can really do. Everyone on the floor can shoot it. We can shoot it. We have to stop them from scoring because they're a good offensive team. We have to lock in on defense. That's the main focus for us."
Is that fun though - playing that style?
"It is kind of fun. That's how we like to play, getting up and down the floor. I feel like it's going to be a fun and fast game. We need to come out, like coach said, play smarter, execute better than they do and we should come out on top."
I asked if Isaiah had a favorite Cajun food. He said he's kind of picky and definitely doesn't like shrimp but didn't name anything specifically.
Though winning games on the road is never easy, Tulane and Tulsa are winnable. If UCF wins both, and then can win their opening game in next week's conference tournament, that would put the Knights at 20 wins. That could be what it takes to strengthen NIT chances. NITology currently has UCF as the final No. 5 seed. That's likely where you need to remain, probably no lower as the No. 6 seed range, as some of the bottom spots will get eaten by automatic bids that occur when a regular season champion in a one-bid league loses in their conference tournament.
Bracketology 2024 - NCAA Tournament / NIT Projections
Our Bracketology for 2024! We list projections for all of NCAA Basketball tournament seeds as well as the NIT tournament in March.
www.dratings.com
We just caught up with Johnny Dawkins, Darius Perry and Isaiah Adams. Video and recap of their interviews:
Login to view embedded media
Login to view embedded media
Login to view embedded media
Johnny Dawkins
Coach Johnny Dawkins said the few extra days off have been good. UCF will go eight days between last Wednesday's home game vs. Cincinnati and Thursday's game at Tulane.
"It's given our guys a chance to heal up some," Dawkins said. "A chance to continue to sharpen their skills and some of the things we want to to do defensively, to lock in on that."
Practices towards the end of the season are shorter to preserve their bodies, but still intense. From my observation, I know the Monday and Tuesday practices this week ended probably 35-45 minutes earlier than usual.
On UCF's struggles on the road (2-5 in the AAC):
"One, we've played some good teams and we didn't shoot the ball well," Dawkins said. "We played some good teams, so it's going to be competitive. We have to shoot the ball better on the road and defend better. It's really that simple."
UCF and Tulane are currently knotted up in the AAC standings, tied for fifth place with identical 9-7 records. A UCF victory would clinch the fifth-place spot and first-round bye in the conference tournament.
"All the games are important for us. Thursday is no exception. Our record will be judged on all the games we play. We have to do our best. It's a good opportunity to play against a good Tulane team. They've had a good conference schedule. We're excited to compete."
UCF will stay on the road for these last two games, spending Friday in New Orleans before flying out to Tulsa on Saturday.
"We have to look at it as a business trip," Dawkins said. "We have to go out there and stay focused on what we're trying to do. Stay locked in. We're in March now. It's an exciting time to be playing. Everyone is excited about this time of year. Our players are as well."
UCF defeated Tulane 68-66 at home on Jan. 22
"They're a very good basketball team with offensive firepower," Dawkins said of Tulane. "They have guys that are very versatile. They're probably one of the most unorthodox teams that we'll play in our conference. Their bigs are like guards. Their guards are very skilled with (Jalen) Cook and (Jaylen) Forbes being two terrific scorers. (Kevin) Cross is one of the best bigs in terms of handling the basketball. He's probably has more assists than any big in our conference. He's like a point center. They're a very difficult team to scout and defend because of their versatility."
Sophomore Isaiah Adams, who had struggled for much of the season, showed a resurgence last time out against Cincinnati by scoring 12 points with two assists, a block and a steal during 14 minutes of play.
"I think his confidence is good," Dawkins said. "He's had a good week of practice. He's continuing to build on that momentum. That's exciting to see. He's getting back to the Isaiah we saw last season. It's a process for some young players. You could say he's had a tough sophomore year, but you take it one game at a time. The last game was terrific and he was getting back to who he is. We know how good he's capable of being and we're going to push him in that direction."
I asked about the status of Brandon Mahan. He was still using crutches last week.
"He's getting better," Dawkins said. "It's still a process for Brandon. He's still not able to go. He's improving. It's just a matter of him healing."
In a follow-up, Dawkins was asked about the possibility of Mahan returning in time for the conference tournament. He was vague, but it didn't seem promising.
"We'll see. The main thing is he's healthy and he heals properly. There's no real rush on that. We're more concerned about the young man and his overall wellbeing. We want to see him continue to heal and we'll see where he is."
On the UCF women winning the American regular season championship:
"I was so proud of them. What a great accomplishment. Coach Abe and her staff have done an amazing job. Excited for them in our conference tournament and NCAA Tournament. They're deserving of winning a championship and they have."
And lastly, Dawkins' former coach and mentor, Mike Krzyzewski, will coach his final home game this Saturday against North Carolina.
"Its an amazing opportunity to see Coach K's last game in Cameron, and it's against our rival North Carolina," Dawkins said. "It doesn't get much bigger than that in sports. It's going to be a great atmosphere. An emotional day as well. He's done an amazing things in our game of basketball. I think it's a great way for him to leave the game."
Darius Perry
The UCF student section had been chanting "Scary Perry" at times this season, particularly last week during his final home game. I asked Darius if he recalled the origin of that and he said he first heard it during the Feb. 3 game vs. South Florida.
"It was cool to hear. It was funny to me... And being able to go out like that in my last home game, that was pretty fun."
Darius said they have to make sure they bring their own energy for these final two games.
He knows Tulane will be fired up, especially since the Green Wave lost to UCF earlier this season.
"It's very important" to beat Tulane to lock up the first-round bye but the circumstances don't really matter because the objective is always to "go 1-0."
In regards to Tulane, they need to keep them out of the lane, stop them from getting out in transition and make them a half-court team.
UCF will be on the road for an extended period of time as they're going straight to Tulsa after playing Tulane. They'll then come home for a couple days before heading out to the conference tournament. I asked about the impact of that. Darius said he's used to it being an older player.
Isaiah Adams
Adams starts off by talking about the recent Cincinnati game in which he scored 12 points off the bench.
"I feel like it was a good game for me, to know I can produce on the floor," Adams said. "It was a good reminder that I can really come out here and play. I look to continue to do that, especially now that it's late in the season."
Adams said it was difficult dealing with the fact he wasn't producing earlier in the season. He said all his teammates were supportive. Isaiah said he's trying to not to rush anything. He said Darius Perry, Mbacke and Mahan in particularly have been supportive.
Why is Tulane tough?
"They play a little different," Adams said. "It's more free form, like a pickup game. You've got to make plays out there. It's nothing you can really do. Everyone on the floor can shoot it. We can shoot it. We have to stop them from scoring because they're a good offensive team. We have to lock in on defense. That's the main focus for us."
Is that fun though - playing that style?
"It is kind of fun. That's how we like to play, getting up and down the floor. I feel like it's going to be a fun and fast game. We need to come out, like coach said, play smarter, execute better than they do and we should come out on top."
I asked if Isaiah had a favorite Cajun food. He said he's kind of picky and definitely doesn't like shrimp but didn't name anything specifically.
