Feb 17, 2024; Orlando, Florida, USA; UCF Knights guard Jaylin Sellers (24) shoots the ball against Cincinnati Bearcats forward John Newman III (15) during the second half at Addition Financial Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mike Watters-USA TODAY Sports
No. 8 Iowa State (22-6, 11-4) travels to Orlando, Florida to clash with the UCF Knights (15-12, 6-9) in the first ever meeting between the two programs in the Big 12 Conference (3:00 p.m., ESPN+)
The Cyclones picked up 58-45 win on Wednesday over the Oklahoma Sooners. Sophomore forward Demarion Watson recorded a career night scoring 15 points on a 7-7 shooting clip from the field, leading his team to the win.
The Knights are coming off a 77-71 road win at Oklahoma State. The team is coming into Saturday’s matchup on a two-game win streak.
About the Knights
UCF coach Johnny Dawkins and his team have had some big wins this season. In its first year in the Big 12 conference, his team sits at 6-9 in league play. The Knights have wins over then No. 3 Kansas, No. 23 Oklahoma, and No. 23 Texas Tech all at home and a signature six-point victory at Texas that secured their first-ever Big 12 road win.
The Knights play very similarly to the previous two teams that T.J. Otzelberger has coached at Iowa State – teams that were terrific on defense but struggled on the offensive end. Per KenPom, the Knights rank 167th in adjusted offense and 12th in adjusted defense.
Dawkins’ team is only allowing 66.9 points per game this season. The team’s ability to block shots with their length in the front court is the reason why the Knights are the No. 1 team in the Big 12 in blocks per game with 5.3.
San Jose State transfer Ibrahima Diallo is the leader of the block party for UCF. The 7-foot-0 center is the league leader in blocks with 1.9 per game. Diallo isn’t a dominant inside scorer, but where he does his work is on offensive glass. He averages 6.1 points and grabs a team-high 5.7 rebounds per game.
The other dominant inside presence for the Knights comes in Omar Payne. The Jacksonville transfer comes off the bench for Coach Dawkins’ squad and provides energy off the bench.
Like Diallo, Payne blocks a lot of shots. The pair has combined to block 89 shots on the season, which is 63 percent of the team’s total blocked shots (89 of 142). The 6-foot-10 graduate senior is tied for third in the Big 12 with 1.5 blocked shots per game. He only trails Baylor center Yves Missi (1.6) and his UCF teammate Diallo.
On the offensive end, the Knights run everything through their talented backcourt duo of Jaylin Sellers and Darius Johnson.
There are only three teams with two or more players in the top 15 in points per game in the Big 12 conference. Kansas’ Hunter Dickinson and Kevin McCullar, Kansas State’s Tylor Perry, Cam Carter, and Arthur Kaluma, and UCF’s Sellers and Johnson.
Sellers, a Ball State transfer, ranks fourth in the conference in scoring with 16.3 points per game. The junior guard also averages 3.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. This season, Sellers has scored 10 or more points in 24 games. Sellers excels at getting to the free-throw line. On the season, he is shooting a team-high 85 percent from the line.
The returning starter in Johnson runs point for the Knights. The 6-foot-1 junior averages 14.4 points, 3.0 rebounds, and a team-high 3.3 assists per game. Johnson is UCF’s deep threat. He shoots 37.1 percent from behind the 3-point arc. Sellers and Johnson are not shy about taking tough shots, so the Cyclones need to hold UCF to one shot per possession or turn them over for easy buckets on the other end.
Keys to victory for the Cyclones
1. Start fast
The Cyclones have gotten out to slow starts in each of their last three games. Iowa State trailed 17-4 at Houston, 11-2 against West Virginia, and were again down Wednesday 20-16 against Oklahoma. It hasn’t been from a lack of defense, though. Other than the Big Monday matchup with Houston, the Cyclones have relatively gotten out to fast starts on the road. With a defensive-minded team like UCF, if Iowa State can jump out to a 10-point lead, it will be tough for the struggling Knight offense to come back.
2. Generate easy baskets
Otzelberger’s teams have typically struggled in the half-court on offense. This season, his teams have found a way to score in their half-court sets. In the last two outings, the Cyclones have struggled to find and convert easy baskets, especially in the early going of games.
One way they can kickstart their offense is to create live ball turnovers. It’s no secret that this team thrives on turnovers. When Keshon Gilbert and Tamin Lipsey start the fast break after a turnover, it usually ends in a layup or dunk for the Cyclones. If they can get back to forcing errant UCF passes, the team can get out to a quick start.
3. Bench production
Production off the bench has been a common theme for Iowa State this season. In the team’s last two wins, unlikely individuals have stepped up and led the Cyclones to victory. Sophomore Jackson Paveletzke was an instant spark off the bench in the Cyclones’ win over West Virginia last Saturday. He only played 16 minutes, but he scored 9 points, collected 2 rebounds, and played tenacious defense. He provided a spark that the team needed when they went down 51-50 with 9:05 left in the second half.
Another sophomore Demarion Watson had a career night against Oklahoma on Wednesday night when Iowa State needed it most. The 6-foot-7 forward scored a career-high 15 points on a perfect 7-7 shooting from the field, which also included a 3-pointer. Watson also grabbed 9 crucial rebounds to help the Cyclones improve to 17-0 at home this season.
“We didn’t have a lot of energy in the first half, so I thought it was just my job to bring energy to the group and do what I do best,” Watson said. “Defensively, (He needed to) be that stopper guy on the team (and) lock up, and then offensively, keep it simple. Cut, get offensive rebounds and just play my game and stay confident in what I do.”
Iowa State will need to continue to get the production they have gotten from Demarion Watson, Jackson Paveletzke, Hason Ward, and Curtis Jones to make a run in the upcoming Big 12 Tournament and NCAA Tournament.
