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ORLANDO — UCF's lengthy basketball layoff makes way for one last holiday rush, beginning Wednesday, Dec. 17.
Winners of seven straight, the Knights (8-1) resume their non-conference schedule when they host Mercer (7-3) for a 7 p.m. tipoff at Addition Financial Arena. Formerly rivals in the Atlantic Sun Conference, UCF has won 19 of 31 all-time meetings with the Bears, most recently in 2017.
The Knights play three times over the next six days, hosting Florida Gulf Coast on Dec. 20 before a quick drive toward Walt Disney World for a Dec. 23 neutral-site meeting with Florida Atlantic at ESPN's Wide World of Sports.
Last time out, UCF produced one of its more emphatic wins of the year, handling Coastal Athletic Association preseason favorite Towson 86-61 on Dec. 7. Fifth-year point guard Themus Fulks had 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting and dished out eight assists.
Here is a quick preview for Wednesday's matchup, including scouting reports of both teams and predictions from News-Journal UCF beat writer Chris Boyle and sports editor Chris Vinel.
With the Big 12 shaping up as the dominant conference in men's college basketball for 2025-26, stacking wins before January remains as important as ever for the Knights. The league features six teams ranked in the latest USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll, including four within the top 10 (Arizona, Iowa State, Houston, BYU).
UCF sits No. 44 in the NET rankings, boosted by its road win over Texas A&M and its lone loss coming against undefeated Vanderbilt. The Knights are off to their best start in Johnny Dawkins' decade as head coach, averaging 119.2 points per 100 possessions and ranking among the top-30 nationally in 3-point shooting (38.74%) and rebounding margin per game (plus-10.2).
Riley Kugel still leads the team in scoring (14.4 ppg), but the senior has made just three of his last 20 shots from the field — including an 0-for-7 mark from 3-point range. Fulks is fifth among Division I players at 7.4 assists per game, and fellow Milwaukee transfer Jamichael Stillwell has posted three double-doubles in the Knights' last five games.
Daytona Beach basketball fans ought to be very familiar with Mercer's second-year head coach, Ryan Ridder. Ridder, the son of longtime Embry-Riddle coach Steve Ridder, had previous spells in charge of Daytona State College and Bethune-Cookman from 2013-21.
Three of Ridder's assistants have ties to Volusia County as well. Jonathan Mitchell coached at Stetson for four years, Daniel Mondragon played at Embry-Riddle and so did Reed Ridder, Ryan's younger brother and an Ormond Beach native.
The Bears put a scare into Clemson over the weekend but fell 70-63 to snap a five-game winning streak. Mercer entered halftime up by six and regained the lead with five minutes left in regulation. Four players average double figures for Mercer, led by Baraka Okojie (18.1 ppg) and Armani Mighty (13.9 ppg, 9.0 rpg).
Chris Boyle: UCF 85, Mercer 73
Chris Vinel: UCF 81, Mercer 75
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: UCF Knights basketball scouting report, predictions vs. Mercer
Continue reading...
Winners of seven straight, the Knights (8-1) resume their non-conference schedule when they host Mercer (7-3) for a 7 p.m. tipoff at Addition Financial Arena. Formerly rivals in the Atlantic Sun Conference, UCF has won 19 of 31 all-time meetings with the Bears, most recently in 2017.
The Knights play three times over the next six days, hosting Florida Gulf Coast on Dec. 20 before a quick drive toward Walt Disney World for a Dec. 23 neutral-site meeting with Florida Atlantic at ESPN's Wide World of Sports.
Last time out, UCF produced one of its more emphatic wins of the year, handling Coastal Athletic Association preseason favorite Towson 86-61 on Dec. 7. Fifth-year point guard Themus Fulks had 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting and dished out eight assists.
Here is a quick preview for Wednesday's matchup, including scouting reports of both teams and predictions from News-Journal UCF beat writer Chris Boyle and sports editor Chris Vinel.
UCF basketball scouting report
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With the Big 12 shaping up as the dominant conference in men's college basketball for 2025-26, stacking wins before January remains as important as ever for the Knights. The league features six teams ranked in the latest USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll, including four within the top 10 (Arizona, Iowa State, Houston, BYU).
UCF sits No. 44 in the NET rankings, boosted by its road win over Texas A&M and its lone loss coming against undefeated Vanderbilt. The Knights are off to their best start in Johnny Dawkins' decade as head coach, averaging 119.2 points per 100 possessions and ranking among the top-30 nationally in 3-point shooting (38.74%) and rebounding margin per game (plus-10.2).
Riley Kugel still leads the team in scoring (14.4 ppg), but the senior has made just three of his last 20 shots from the field — including an 0-for-7 mark from 3-point range. Fulks is fifth among Division I players at 7.4 assists per game, and fellow Milwaukee transfer Jamichael Stillwell has posted three double-doubles in the Knights' last five games.
Mercer basketball scouting report
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Daytona Beach basketball fans ought to be very familiar with Mercer's second-year head coach, Ryan Ridder. Ridder, the son of longtime Embry-Riddle coach Steve Ridder, had previous spells in charge of Daytona State College and Bethune-Cookman from 2013-21.
Three of Ridder's assistants have ties to Volusia County as well. Jonathan Mitchell coached at Stetson for four years, Daniel Mondragon played at Embry-Riddle and so did Reed Ridder, Ryan's younger brother and an Ormond Beach native.
The Bears put a scare into Clemson over the weekend but fell 70-63 to snap a five-game winning streak. Mercer entered halftime up by six and regained the lead with five minutes left in regulation. Four players average double figures for Mercer, led by Baraka Okojie (18.1 ppg) and Armani Mighty (13.9 ppg, 9.0 rpg).
UCF vs. Mercer time, TV channel
- TV channel: ESPN+
- Date: Wednesday, Dec. 17
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Location: Addition Financial Arena, Orlando
UCF vs. Mercer score predictions
Chris Boyle: UCF 85, Mercer 73
Chris Vinel: UCF 81, Mercer 75
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: UCF Knights basketball scouting report, predictions vs. Mercer
Continue reading...
