Dawkins said the Knights can’t be shaken

UCF men’s basketball faces its toughest challenges yet against the undefeated No.1 Arizona Wildcats, a team with 17 wins overall—four during conference play—and sits at the top of the Big XII in most offensive and defensive categories.

According to the Big XII 2025-2026 Men’s Basketball Overall Statistics Team Stats, Arizona leads the conference in scoring with more than 1,500 points, averaging 91 points per game and shooting 0.520% from the field.

Defensively, Arizona’s overall combined team rebounds average 43.6% per game with 742 rebounds and 511 team defensive rebounds on an average of 30.1% per game.

UCF men’s basketball head coach Johnny Dawkins called the Wildcats one of the more balanced teams he’s seen this year.

“They play very well together, and so that’s where the challenges are,” Dawkins said. “You have to guard the perimeter and the bigs. They are all threats out there, so we need to make sure we’re focused and understand the game plan.”

Dawkins said the Knights need to maintain their own rhythm, as he believes both teams will play fast and battle for a win.

“They score over 90 points a game, so we have to make sure that we do our best to make them a half-court team,” Dawkins said. “I think you can’t try to play someone else’s game, so we have to get back and defend in the half-court.”

Senior forward Jaimichael Stillwell anticipates an aggressive matchup against a 1st-ranked team.

“It’s about who’s going to do the dirty work, get on the floor for loose balls, box out, and want to rebound,” Stillwell said. “It’s going to come down to the toughness in the team and the togetherness.”

But despite Arizona being ranked first in the nation, Dawkins assured that his players are confident, but urged them to maintain focus and not pay attention to the name on the front of the jersey.

“If you start looking at all the attributes, rankings, and names on jerseys, it can be a distraction,” Dawkins said. “You have to concentrate on our team and the things that we’ve had to do this season to be successful.”

Dawkins also leads with a philosophy he calls “next play mentality,” where players should take one game at a time, especially in the Big XII.

“You have to have a short memory,” Dawkins said. “Whether you win or lose, you have to be able to move forward because the next opponent is going to be very talented. This league is as deep as I’ve seen any league I’ve ever been a part of, so you need to make sure you prepare that way every night.”

The UCF head coach isn’t the only person who feels the ferocity of the Big XII.

Throughout conference play, Stillwell said every night feels like a “dogfight” no matter who they face, while junior forward Jordan Burks mentioned the team treats every game like a championship.

“No game is too little. No game is too big,” Burks said. “Like coach [Dawkins] said, we just play to our highest standards that we can, and we got each other.”

Like the Knights’ previous home games, Dawkins said the fans need to bring the noise as it gives them an advantage every college basketball team needs when a visitor comes to home court, calling them their “sixth man.”

“I think where everyone comes out and rallies around, we’re all part of the same team,” Dawkins said. “ I’m excited to have our students back and excited to have our community come out and rally behind us because we’re going to need everyone.”

Tune into ESPN at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 17, to see if UCF can end the No.1 Arizona’s 17-game winning streak at home.