A lot of fans on Twitter, Justin Hiles and Steve Maurer of the Viva La Cats Podcast- give them a listen if you haven’t already, you won’t regret it. Our Bearcats beat colleague Keegan Nickoson talked about it earlier this week. Now that the Bearcats are through the opening six-game gauntlet of Big 12 play, these next two games are got-to-have-it games. Win Saturday night against UCF, next Wednesday night at West Virginia and this team will be in a favorable position come the start of February.
But Saturday night’s game won’t be easy. Central Florida is off to a 3-3 start in Big 12 play. They have wins over Kansas and Texas. Plus, this program knows the Bearcats well from their days in the American Athletic Conference. These two teams played several close games in 10 seasons together in the American, and Saturday will be a good first look at if this rivalry will carry over into the Big 12.
The Knights have a lot of new faces on a roster also competing in their first season in the Big 12. The Knights have been able to hold their own in Big 12 play so far, and this won’t be a gimme game for the Bearcats. It’s a game they got to have, though, especially playing at home for the last time until Feb. 10. With that, here are my players to watch Saturday night against Central Florida.
1. #24 Jaylin Sellers, 6’4″, 196 lbs., Jr., G, Columbus, Ga., Ball State Transfer
17.1 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 43% FG, 27.5 3-PT FG%, 85.4 FT%, 24 stl, 31.7 mpg
Sellers is in his first season with the Knights after two seasons at Ball State. He’s adjusted well to the Big 12, a huge step up from the Mid-American Conference. The leading scorer on the Knights, Sellers has scored in double figures in 16 of 18 games this season. But one glaring weakness has been his three-point shooting this season, which is a surprise considering he was second in the MAC last year shooting 45 percent from three-point range. That’s one key for the Bearcats Saturday night, is to not let Sellers get to the rim or to the free throw line. Like UCF, Sellers has had an up-and-down start to Big 12 play. He’s been good one game and then not-so-good the next game, much like the Knights have been overall. But he is the Knights leading scorer for a reason and is the most important player to watch on Central Florida Saturday night.
2. #3 Darius Johnson, 6’1′, 200 lbs., Jr., G, Boyds, Md.
13.2 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 39.6 FG%, 37.1 3-PT FG%, 80% FT, 62 ast.-61 TO, 32 stl, 32.2 mpg
Johnson is enjoying best season since arriving to Central Florida in 2021. He’s moved from fourth on the team in scoring last season to second this season and is on pace to eclipse 100 assists for the second straight season. Like Sellers, Johnson is good from the field and from the free-throw line. But the third-year guard is also solid from three-point range, leading the team in that category. Johnson has 14 games in double figures this season, but he’s only scored 10 combined points over Central Florida’s last two games. In those two games, Johnson has only shot 1-14 from the field including 1-8 from three-point range.
