After a week off, UCF will head out west for a two-game Big 12 road trip at No. 23 Texas Tech (Saturday, 4 p.m.) and No. 21 BYU (Tuesday, 9 p.m.).
The Knights (13-8, 4-5 Big 12) capped off the first half of their league schedule at home last Saturday with a 74-63 win against No. 23 Oklahoma.
So far, UCF has obliterated expectations for their first year in the Big 12. For a team projected to finish last, the Knights instead could have postseason in their sights. An NIT bid appears attainable. NCAA Tournament is still a possibility, though UCF likely has to finish at least 5-4 in the second half of the conference season. Picking up one or more wins at Texas Tech (No. 36 NET) and BYU (No. 8 NET) would go a long way.
Texas Tech Notes:
The Red Raiders (16-6, 5-4) began Big 12 play winning five of their first six games, but have dropped three consecutive games to No. 23 TCU, Cincinnati and No. 13 Baylor. They are 11-1 at home though, the lone setback inside United Supermarkets Arena was to the Bearcats.
Coach Grant McCasland is in his first season in Lubbock after spending the last several years as the head coach at North Texas. In 2016, Terry Mohajir give him his first Division I head coaching job at Arkansas State.
Sophomore guard Pop Isaacs leads the Big 12 averaging 19.4 points in conference-only games.
In Big 12 games, Texas Tech is No. 4 offensively (75.0 ppg) while UCF is No. 14 (62.9 ppg). Defensively, Texas Tech is No. 11 (giving up 75.2 ppg) while UCF is No. 2 (giving up 66.1 ppg).
The Red Raiders have struggled on the boards. They're last in the Big 12 in combined team rebounds and rebounding margin.
This will be the first-ever meeting between UCF and Texas Tech.
BYU Notes:
Like UCF, BYU has also exceeded expectations this season. The Cougars are 16-6 overall and 4-5 in the Big 12, which includes a 63-58 victory at UCF on Jan. 13.
In Big 12 games, BYU is No. 5 offensively (73.8 ppg) and No. 10 defensively (74.3 ppg). They lead the Big 12 in three-pointers, averaging 10.7 made per game. On a national basis, BYU is No. 2 in three-pointers made per game.
Jaxson Robinson (13.5 ppg) leads the Cougars in scoring, though it's been a team effort as six BYU players average in double figures.
BYU plays in the Marriott Center, one of college basketball's larger campus venues. They're averaging more than 16,000 fans for Big 12 games.
==
On Thursday, we caught up with head coach Johnny Dawkins, Shemarri Allen and Ibrahima Diallo.
Johnny Dawkins
This week has been spent on improving different facets of their game.
"It would be nice" to get a win streak going.
They need to continue to get better offensively and defensively, execution wise. Whether that's following the game plan or connecting with one another on the offensive end.
CJ Walker is "still working his way back" from injury.
Dawkins usually likes to keep on playing, doesn't necessarily like bye weeks, but it's important because they have been dealing with some injury issues.
Looking at road games, it's all about composure and confidence.
Texas Tech has a really good team with scoring ability. Tough and gritty. They do a good job on both ends.
Reflecting on the 300-wins congratulatory video, Dawkins said he was grateful to hear from so many of his former players.
It was mentioned in the Dungeon that the "court slapping" to get a stop on defense originated with Coach K at Duke, so I asked Dawkins about the origins of the practice. He wasn't totally sure, but thinks Duke was the first one to do it. He likes seeing this team take on the same practice, doing so unprompted.
Defense leads to offense, which really helped them in the Oklahoma game. They want to play fast, and you need to get stops in order to get out and run.
It was huge to have Shemarri Allen back for the Oklahoma game. He gives a tremendous effort and is a great leader. "He gives you so much. The box score doesn't always show it. He gave us a huge lift in that game."
Shemarri Allen
Allen has had a great week of practice and is close to 100 percent. He did say he was fatigued somewhat in his return.
Not playing in the midweek, Allen watched Texas Tech play Baylor on Tuesday and they've spent more time watching film. Texas Tech has really good guards that can shoot and crash the boards.
They need to stay calm, cool and collected on the road in hostile environments.
Allen is interested in a future coaching career.
Looking ahead to a long road trip, Allen said in some ways it's "easier" because everything is focused on basketball with zero distractions.
On the road, the players like to play NBA 2K. A couple guys typically bring along their video game systems. Allen likes to play as the Lakers.
Ibrahima Diallo
Diallo felt this break was much needed since a few players are dealing with bumps and bruises at this point of the season.
This week has been about fixing mistakes.
Diallo says Shemarri Allen makes a big impact defensively.
Texas Tech moves the ball well. He did watch them play Baylor.
On road trips, he talks to his family on FaceTime a lot.
It's difficult being a 7-footer to sleep on hotel beds.
His road trip roommate is freshman Mintautas Mockus. Diallo is serving as a mentor for him. He went through a lot of same things when he was a freshman, so he can share some wisdom.
His family home in Senegal is unable to watch the games live since ESPN+ is not available, but they can watch a recording later on Youtube.
Diallo grew up playing soccer. He was going to be the next Cristiano Ronaldo. Basketball is becoming a lot more popular in Senegal.
Diallo had a growth spurt at the age of 13 and that's when he was encouraged to start playing basketball. He was being told by friends that he was too tall to continue playing soccer.
He didn't really love basketball at first. His dad bought him some Jordan 1s, but he had to play basketball. He loved the shoes, so he did. He eventually grew to love the game.
Playing basketball has done "everything" for him. He got the opportunity to come to the United States, learned a new language, got a degree, met great people. He learns so much every day.
The basketball player he looks up to is Joel Embiid. He got to meet him in 2019.
The Knights (13-8, 4-5 Big 12) capped off the first half of their league schedule at home last Saturday with a 74-63 win against No. 23 Oklahoma.
So far, UCF has obliterated expectations for their first year in the Big 12. For a team projected to finish last, the Knights instead could have postseason in their sights. An NIT bid appears attainable. NCAA Tournament is still a possibility, though UCF likely has to finish at least 5-4 in the second half of the conference season. Picking up one or more wins at Texas Tech (No. 36 NET) and BYU (No. 8 NET) would go a long way.
Texas Tech Notes:
The Red Raiders (16-6, 5-4) began Big 12 play winning five of their first six games, but have dropped three consecutive games to No. 23 TCU, Cincinnati and No. 13 Baylor. They are 11-1 at home though, the lone setback inside United Supermarkets Arena was to the Bearcats.
Coach Grant McCasland is in his first season in Lubbock after spending the last several years as the head coach at North Texas. In 2016, Terry Mohajir give him his first Division I head coaching job at Arkansas State.
Sophomore guard Pop Isaacs leads the Big 12 averaging 19.4 points in conference-only games.
In Big 12 games, Texas Tech is No. 4 offensively (75.0 ppg) while UCF is No. 14 (62.9 ppg). Defensively, Texas Tech is No. 11 (giving up 75.2 ppg) while UCF is No. 2 (giving up 66.1 ppg).
The Red Raiders have struggled on the boards. They're last in the Big 12 in combined team rebounds and rebounding margin.
This will be the first-ever meeting between UCF and Texas Tech.
BYU Notes:
Like UCF, BYU has also exceeded expectations this season. The Cougars are 16-6 overall and 4-5 in the Big 12, which includes a 63-58 victory at UCF on Jan. 13.
In Big 12 games, BYU is No. 5 offensively (73.8 ppg) and No. 10 defensively (74.3 ppg). They lead the Big 12 in three-pointers, averaging 10.7 made per game. On a national basis, BYU is No. 2 in three-pointers made per game.
Jaxson Robinson (13.5 ppg) leads the Cougars in scoring, though it's been a team effort as six BYU players average in double figures.
BYU plays in the Marriott Center, one of college basketball's larger campus venues. They're averaging more than 16,000 fans for Big 12 games.
==
On Thursday, we caught up with head coach Johnny Dawkins, Shemarri Allen and Ibrahima Diallo.
Johnny Dawkins
This week has been spent on improving different facets of their game.
"It would be nice" to get a win streak going.
They need to continue to get better offensively and defensively, execution wise. Whether that's following the game plan or connecting with one another on the offensive end.
CJ Walker is "still working his way back" from injury.
Dawkins usually likes to keep on playing, doesn't necessarily like bye weeks, but it's important because they have been dealing with some injury issues.
Looking at road games, it's all about composure and confidence.
Texas Tech has a really good team with scoring ability. Tough and gritty. They do a good job on both ends.
Reflecting on the 300-wins congratulatory video, Dawkins said he was grateful to hear from so many of his former players.
It was mentioned in the Dungeon that the "court slapping" to get a stop on defense originated with Coach K at Duke, so I asked Dawkins about the origins of the practice. He wasn't totally sure, but thinks Duke was the first one to do it. He likes seeing this team take on the same practice, doing so unprompted.
Defense leads to offense, which really helped them in the Oklahoma game. They want to play fast, and you need to get stops in order to get out and run.
It was huge to have Shemarri Allen back for the Oklahoma game. He gives a tremendous effort and is a great leader. "He gives you so much. The box score doesn't always show it. He gave us a huge lift in that game."
Shemarri Allen
Allen has had a great week of practice and is close to 100 percent. He did say he was fatigued somewhat in his return.
Not playing in the midweek, Allen watched Texas Tech play Baylor on Tuesday and they've spent more time watching film. Texas Tech has really good guards that can shoot and crash the boards.
They need to stay calm, cool and collected on the road in hostile environments.
Allen is interested in a future coaching career.
Looking ahead to a long road trip, Allen said in some ways it's "easier" because everything is focused on basketball with zero distractions.
On the road, the players like to play NBA 2K. A couple guys typically bring along their video game systems. Allen likes to play as the Lakers.
Ibrahima Diallo
Diallo felt this break was much needed since a few players are dealing with bumps and bruises at this point of the season.
This week has been about fixing mistakes.
Diallo says Shemarri Allen makes a big impact defensively.
Texas Tech moves the ball well. He did watch them play Baylor.
On road trips, he talks to his family on FaceTime a lot.
It's difficult being a 7-footer to sleep on hotel beds.
His road trip roommate is freshman Mintautas Mockus. Diallo is serving as a mentor for him. He went through a lot of same things when he was a freshman, so he can share some wisdom.
His family home in Senegal is unable to watch the games live since ESPN+ is not available, but they can watch a recording later on Youtube.
Diallo grew up playing soccer. He was going to be the next Cristiano Ronaldo. Basketball is becoming a lot more popular in Senegal.
Diallo had a growth spurt at the age of 13 and that's when he was encouraged to start playing basketball. He was being told by friends that he was too tall to continue playing soccer.
He didn't really love basketball at first. His dad bought him some Jordan 1s, but he had to play basketball. He loved the shoes, so he did. He eventually grew to love the game.
Playing basketball has done "everything" for him. He got the opportunity to come to the United States, learned a new language, got a degree, met great people. He learns so much every day.
The basketball player he looks up to is Joel Embiid. He got to meet him in 2019.
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