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UCF (14-5, 3-2) will be in Texas for the second time this week, as they will be playing in El Paso for the first time since December 15, 1978. The game is scheduled for a 4:00 p.m. (EST) tip-off inside the Miners’ Don Haskins Center on Saturday and will be played before a national audience on CSTV.

The all-time series against UTEP is tied, 1-1. The Miners are 12-8 overall and 4-2 in CUSA this season.

Last year, the Knights claimed a victory over the Miners in Orlando, 66-55. Mike O’Donnell was 6-of-6 from 3-point range and had 23 points in the win for the Knights. As for the Miners, Jason Williams finished with 26 points. UCF won the battle of the boards by a 31-26 margin in last year’s contest.

UCF comes into this game reeling after having their three-game win streak snapped at Houston on Wednesday night. The Golden Knights relinquished a 22-point lead against the Cougars and hope that the missed opportunity is the culmination of their season long problem—the inability to put teams away.

As for the Miners, they come into this game fresh off a disappointing 73-67 loss at Rice on Wednesday night. UTEP is a very young and somewhat undersized team, but Tony Barbee’s squad had been playing well prior to the meltdown at the free throw line against the Owls.

One of the biggest keys for the Knights will be for them to do something they have struggled to do this season and that is finish. They have been lucky that they have not lost more games due to their lack of production in the second half. As the season goes on, and the deeper the Knights get into conference play they will need to play a strong 40 minutes if they will have any chance in contending for the conference title.

UCF will also need to contain Stefon Jackson and Kevin Henderson, as they are both averaging over 10 points a game. Also the Knights will need to win the battle of the boards against the smaller Miners and have a good day from their leading scorer, Jermaine Taylor.

The Golden Knights hope to erase the negative feeling they have from the Houston loss while also establishing some momentum as they come home to a standing room only crowd against Memphis on the 31 st.