Insider: Rivalry Heats Up Between UCF and Marshall
With UCF coming down the home stretch of conference play, every win is critical if they still have any hope of finding their way into the NCAA Tournament. However, hosting Marshall at the UCF Arena Wednesday brings more than just a resume building opportunity.
At 5-4, the Thundering Herd place in the upper tier of the CUSA Standings, but more importantly the Knights still have a bitter taste in their mouths after a 65-64 loss in Huntington just over three weeks ago. On top all of that, you have a contest placed in the context of a rivalry revolving around UCF head coach Donnie Jones.
Sophomore Tristan Spurlock says the rabid arena they walked into January 14th fired them up then and can still motivate his teammates now.
“It was great because you get to play the villain role,” said Spurlock. “For some reason, they put us in that role. For guys like A.J., Marcus, Keith, and Isaiah, we thrive off that role. We thrive on that type of environment where our backs are against the wall.”
While the Knights did not prevail in that earlier meeting, they grew exponentially from the process. Many believe that the close road loss to the Herd helped UCF topple Memphis just four days later.
Standing at 17-6 and 6-3 in CUSA, it is time for the Knights to use a potential victory over Marshall as another springboard for their season. Coach Jones knows that this game coupled with Saturday’s tilt at first place Southern Miss could decide his team’s postseason landing spot.
“If you want to compete at the top of your league you have to win all of your home games,” said Jones. “Obviously, we fell short against Southern Miss. You have to try to make one up somewhere on the road, but you have to take care of home.”
Competition between rivals did take a backseat when news broke that the Herd’s DeAndre Kane had his father pass away early Tuesday. Kane is Marshall’s leading scorer at 16.2 points per game but did not make the trip with his team.
Despite his tragic absence, UCF still has their hands full. Marshall is the top rebounding team in CUSA and boasts the conference’s third leading rebounder, Dennis Tinnon.
“That is the biggest thing for us,” said Keith Clanton on getting to the glass. “We feel if we rebound we have a great chance to win the game. Coach told us we have to control the glass. We know they have four guys that are going to crash every time.”
Clanton is one Knights player looking to atone for his performance in Huntington. He was just 4-11 from the field and committed an uncharacteristic five fouls and five turnovers.
Knowing that one less turnover or one extra basket might have changed the outcome the first time around has Clanton as focused as anyone for this showdown against the Herd. Despite the appearance that Marshall may be down after losing five of their last six, there is no question that this game looms large for all.
“I went to class and I kind of got in trouble because that is all everyone wanted to talk about was the game tomorrow,” said Spurlock. “Everybody’s excited. I’m excited. I can’t wait. I just want to get that win.
News & Notes
- All reports indicate that Memphis has accepted an invitation to join the Big East for 2013. The Tigers accompany UCF and other new institutions entering the league for all sports in 2013. Reportedly, they are officially announcing the move today at one eastern.
- New athletic director Todd Stansbury made the first hire of his regime on Monday. Zack Lassiter leaves the University of Utah after eight years to become the new Associate Athletic Director for External Operations. Also, Executive Associate AD David Chambers left the department yesterday.
- Talking with sophomore forward Tristan Spurlock yesterday, we discussed his drive to get more Twitter followers. Spurlock is not just one of the most insightful players on the Knights basketball roster, but one of best guys I have interviewed covering UCF Athletics. Follow him on Twitter for some of his great thoughts https://twitter.com/#!/TristanUCF1
Tags: UCF Knights
