UCF basketball prepares for challenges in inaugural Big 12 season
Sytia Messer spent eight seasons traversing the ins and outs of the Big 12 as an assistant coach at Baylor. If anyone is suited to prepare her UCF team for what it can expect in its new conference home, it’s the second-year Knights women’s basketball coach.
“We’re excited to be in the Big 12,” Messer said during the team’s media day Wednesday. “I’m excited to get back.”
As the men’s and women’s teams prepare to open their respective seasons in less than a month, the common thread throughout both programs is how each will fare in their first go-around in the Big 12.
Messer’s team was picked last in the Big 12 preseason media poll last week, a point of contention among those on the team.
“It stung a little bit,” said Messer, who is 14-15 in her first season with the Knights. “But then I looked at it like, ‘Wow, what a great opportunity. They have us here and we get better each day and can prove people wrong.’ ”
“That’s disrespectful,” said senior center Jayla Kelly. “We’re going to take it personally. That motivates us daily to get better and we love being the underdogs. We embrace it.”
UCF men’s coach Johnny Dawkins doesn’t need to be reminded how good Big 12 basketball is.
Fire Mario Cristobal. Fire Gus Malzahn. Fire Billy Napier. Fire everybody! | Commentary
“The numbers speak for themselves,” said Dawkins. “Eight of the last 10 years, it’s been ranked the No. 1 basketball conference in the country. You look at three out of the last four national championships and it’s been a Big 12 team either winning it or playing for it. It’s been a phenomenal conference.”
The Big 12 had seven teams earn bids to last year’s NCAA basketball tournament, with Kansas State and Texas advancing to the Elite Eight. The year before that, there were six teams to earn bids, with Kansas winning the national championship.
UCF is coming off a 19-15 campaign, with the Knights making it to the second round of the National Invitational Tournament. The program has qualified for the NCAA Tournament once (2018-19) in the eight seasons under Dawkins.
Expectations are the men’s team could also find itself near the bottom of the Big 12 preseason media rankings when they come out later this week.
“We want to establish ourselves as a competitive team in the Big 12,” Dawkins said. “That’s something we talk about as a team and staff because we want to put our best foot forward.
“You want to enter a new conference with everyone understanding that when they play UCF, this is what we will expect. When we play them, expect it to be a tough, hard-fought game.”
Both teams enter this season with several new faces on the roster.
The women’s team added freshmen Achol Akot, Sierra Godbolt and Khyala Ngodu, along with transfers Timia Ware (LSU), Kaitlin Peterson (Indiana) and Kelly (Missouri).
The men’s roster, meanwhile, was revamped with 10 newcomers added to the team mainly through the transfer market, including Jaylin Sellers (Ball State), Omar Payne (Jacksonville), Shemarri Allen (UMKC), Ibrahima Diallo (San Jose State), Marchelus Avery (New Mexico State) and DeMarr Langford (Boston College).
Despite the new players, veteran fifth-year forward C.J. Walker has seen the group come together well over the past few months.
UCF coach Gus Malzahn agrees to contract extension through 2027
“We’ve been playing cohesive with each other and I feel like we all have one goal in mind and we can’t wait to show everyone what we can do,” said Walker.
UCF’s women’s team opens the 2023-24 season by hosting Bethune-Cookman at Addition Financial Arena at 6 p.m. on Nov. 6, followed by the men hosting FIU at 8 p.m.
Email Matt Murschel at mmurschel@orlandosentinel.com or follow him on Twitter at @osmattmurschel.