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Sports

UH and UCF to settle unfinished business

Cougars and Golden Knights ready to face off in the conference quarterfinals tonight in Memphis

by BEN GEGENHEIMER
The Daily Cougar

It has been a busy week for the men's basketball team. Following Saturday night's 69-62 loss to Memphis in the regular season finale, the Cougars flew back to Houston for a couple of days. The team then boarded a plane on Tuesday afternoon to head back to Memphis for this week's Conference USA tournament.

In the midst of all this, a few players had to stop and collect some hardware. Junior guards Lanny Smith and Oliver Lafayette as well as senior forward Ramon Dyer were named to the all-conference team.

Lafayette and Dyer were named All C-USA Second Team selections while Smith was selected to the third team. It is the first such honor for all three players.

Lafayette finished the season as the third leading scorer in C-USA with 15.6 points per game. His 75 three-point field goals were the third most in the conference as well. Lafayette also proved to be a top defender, as he led the league with more than three steals per contest.

During the season, Dyer put together the complete package, grabbing 6.3 rebounds per game and draining 57 three-pointers, the fourth most in the conference. Smith averaged 11.9 points and a team-high 5.5 assists per contest.

UH will heavily rely on this trio to carry it through the conference tournament, which began Wednesday afternoon at the FedEx Forum in Memphis. 

Head coach Tom Penders is confident his team has done enough to convince the NCAA selection committee the Cougars deserve a bid to the NCAA Tournament. However, a strong showing in the C-USA tournament would certainly help the team's chances.

"I'd feel really good if we got to the finals (of the C-USA tournament)," Penders said. "This is what you play for; to get to March and have a chance and play in the postseason."

The Cougars are seeded fourth in C-USA and received a first-round bye. UH is scheduled to face the winner of Wednesday night's Central Florida-East Carolina game tonight at 8 p.m. 

"I'm sure they (the players) are excited," Penders said. "I try to play it down and get them to have fun, relax and enjoy the moment."
 

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