Bethune-Cookman @ Central Florida preview

Last Meeting ( Dec 21, 2016 ) Bethune-Cookman 41, Central Florida 71

Central Florida hosts Bethune-Cookman on Wednesday night in a battle between teams streaking in different directions. The Knights come in riding a five-game winning streak after defeating Sacred Heart 76-65 on Sunday while the Wildcats have dropped four straight, including an 87-68 loss at California Baptist on Saturday.

The Knights' surge has them in position to equal last season’s 9-2 start, which was the school's best in the last nine seasons. They are doing it with nearly a brand-new squad as redshirt junior forward Collin Smith, senior guard Frank Bertz and redshirt junior guard Ceasar DeJesus are the only three returning players with experience at UCF as the team returned just 19.7 percent of the scoring from last season, most of it by Smith. As a result, the Knights are winning this season with balance as four players are contributing at least 10 points per game for a team averaging 77.6 points during its win streak. That could be trouble for Bethune-Cookman, which is 0-5 when opponents score at least 72 points.

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ABOUT BETHUNE-COOKMAN (5-6): The Wildcats are primarily led offensively by senior guard/forward Isaiah Bailey (14.2 ppg) and junior forward Cletrell Pope (13), both of whom are averaging in double figures for the season despite combining for just 5-of-24 3-pointers and they come off big games in the loss to California Baptist. Bailey finished the contest with a game-high 21 points, 18 of which came in the first half, while Pope recorded his seventh double-double of the season with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Pope is by far the best rebounder with 11.8 boards per game for a team averaging 39.1 with Wali Parks next with 5.0 per contest.

ABOUT UCF (8-2): Smith paces the team in scoring, nearly matching his average (14.7) in the win over Sacred Heart with 14 points in addition to a team-high 10 rebounds for his second double-double of the season. Over the last six games, the leading scorer has been either Smith or DeJesus, who is tied with freshman Darin Green Jr. for second on the team in scoring (10.4). The defense bounced back from a disappointing effort against Green Bay, holding Sacred Heart to a season-best 14.8 percent shooting from downtown and 38.8 percent overall from the floor.

TIP-INS

1. The Knights have won the last 12 meetings with the Wildcats, including a 71-41 win in 2016.

2. UCF is 5-1 at home this season.

3. Green tops the Knights with 22 3-pointers.

PREDICTION: UCF 79, Bethune-Cookman 66