The personnel report for #1 Houston’s last road game: The UCF Knights.

UCF Personnel

*#3- Darius Johnson- 6’1″ Jr. – 14ppg, 3rpg, 4apg, 2spg

vs. UH on 1/20/24 – 3 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists

• Strong point guard;
• Good three-level scorer;
• Outstanding three-point shooter;
• Solid in the mid-range; Nice step-back jumper;
• Capable of attacking the rim;
• Good at distributing on the drive and kicking;
• Ranked #13 in the nation in “Steals Per Game” with 2.32:
  

*#11- Ibrahima Diallo- 7’0″ 5th – 6ppg, 6rpg, 2 bpg (San Jose State/Ohio State)

vs. UH on 1/20/24 – 0 points, 5 rebounds, 1 steal

• Massive post player;
• Solid around the basket;
• Great shot blocker. (Ranked #44 in the nation in “Shots Blocked Per Game” with 1.81);
• Great rebounder on both ends;
• Guards can “dig” the ball when he dribbles in the post;
• Decent in the pick and roll:
  

*#21- C.J. Walker- 6’8″ 5th – 7ppg, 5rpg (Oregon)

vs. UH on 1/20/24 – 4 points, 2 rebounds, 1 block, 1 steal

• Long/athletic foward;
• Not bad in the post;
• Monster trap could give him fits in the paint;
• Solid at attacking the rim;
• Not a great three-point shooter, but is capable:
  

*#24- Jaylin Sellers- 6’4″ Jr. – 16ppg, 4rpg. (Ball State)

vs. UH on 1/20/24 – 4 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assist

• LEFTY; Athletic/Guard;
• Three-level scorer;
• Good three-point shooter and leads team in 3pt attempts;
• Capable mid-range shooter:
  

*#2- Shemarri Allen- 6’4″ 5th – 8ppg, 4rpg (UMKC)

vs. UH on 1/20/24 – 5 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal

• Solid at attacking the rim;
• Capable, but not a great three-point shooter;
• Good defender;
• Extremely loose with the ball. Pressure him:
  

#13- Marchelus Avery- 6’7″ Sr. – 8ppg, 4rpg (New Mexico State)

vs. UH on 1/20/24 – 10 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block

• Long/athletic forward;
• Great motor;
• Good around the basket;
• Solid three-point shooter:
  

#5- Omar Payne- 6’10” 5th season – 5ppg, 4rpg (Jacksonville/Illinois/Florida)

vs. UH on 1/20/24 – 2 points, 2 rebounds, 1 block, 1 steal

• Very athletic big man;
• Great offensive rebounder;
• Good shot blocker;
• Decent in the pick and roll;
• Fourth school in the last four seasons;

#12- DeMarr Langford Jr.- 6’5″ Sr. – 2ppg, 1rpg (Boston College)

vs. UH on 1/20/24 – 0 points, 1 rebound

• Not a good shooter;
• Not terrible around the basket:
  

#31- Thierno Sylla- 6’11” So. – 4ppg, 4rpg

vs. UH on 1/20/24 – 8 points, 5 rebounds

• Super long/athletic forward;
• Capable three-point shooter;

#1- Antwann Jones- 6’6″ 5th – 5ppg, 2pg (Louisiana/Creighton/Memphis)

vs. UH on 1/20/24 – 2 points, 1 steal

Keys to Victory

1. Keep the boards clean. UCF is a very good offensive rebounding team. The UH bigs are severely banged up. Ja’Vier Francis needs to be HUGE in this game. Big Ced Lath has to play big, and J’Wan must do what he always does.
2. Take care of the basketball. UCF has turned up the defensive intensity recently. The Coog guards will have to take care of the ball and not allow “live-ball” turnovers that can turn into easy offense.
3. Don’t underestimate them. It would be easy to underestimate UCF after their horrendous performance at Fertitta Center. However, they are much improved and really good in Orlando. The Coogs must be focused and ready to have a big, out-of-town business trip.
4. Attack the paint on offense. The Knights struggled to keep the Coogs out of the paint in Houston. UH should try to feed J’Wan early and see how they decide to defend him. The guards should look to attack the paint early and often until they show they can stop it.
5. “You can get a bucket back. You can’t get a foul back.” Obviously, depth is an official concern for UH. The guys that step on the court can’t afford to make cheap/dumb fouls. There’s no need to reach on every drive and block every shot. Sometimes, availability is a bigger strength than a risky blocked shot. The guys will need to know how many fouls they have and adjust accordingly.

Jayme Hollingsworth scouts UCF Basketball