The Knights return home after a pair of losses

The UCF men’s basketball team prepares for an uphill battle against the West Virginia Mountaineers on Saturday night at the Addition Financial Arena.

The Knights (17-6, 6-5 Big 12) return home after suffering a 20-point margin loss on the road against the Cincinnati Bearcats (12-12, 4-7 Big 12)—a team UCF narrowly beat at home early this season, 73-72.

UCF men’s basketball head coach Johnny Dawkins said the Knights did not play as composed as they have been through most of the season and need to stick to their standards as they continue through conference play.

“We have room to get better and that’s where we’re in the process of becoming,” Dawkins said at the media availability press conference. “This league is very challenging. At home or away, you’re gonna face a tough team every single night, from top to bottom in this league.”

Redshirt junior Jeremy Foumena came off the bench in the Cincinnati matchup after sustaining an injury in UCF’s loss to Iowa State on January 20, telling the media he felt winded at first but adjusted as the game progressed.

“It was difficult,” Foumena said at the media availability press conference. “[But] it felt good playing back with the team, together as a family. To go out there and compete with my teammates is the best feeling right now.”

Sixth-year forward Devan Cambridge emphasized that defense has been the Knights’ main focus—which will be crucial against the Mountaineers—and that the team is revisiting the work done in the offseason.

“Defense has to be our identity and it hasn’t been lately,” Cambridge said at the media availability press conference. “The only games we’ve lost, we have been out-toughed and out-rebounded. That’s just defense.”

Dawkins said West Virginia (15-9, 6-5 Big 12) is a well-coached team that understands its roles on the court, while calling West Virginia senior guard Honor Huff one of the best shooters in the league. According to the 2025-26 Big 12 Men’s Basketball Individual Statistics, Huff is currently among the top 20 in scoring, averaging 15.3 points, and among the top 11 in three-point field goal percentage, shooting .362.

“They’re very organized at what they do,” Dawkins said. “That’s something I look at in the trademark programs. ‘How are you defensively or offensively? Do you execute?’ I think they do that well on both sides of the basketball.”

He asked and appreciated the help of their “sixth man” once again, but also expects the Knights to perform and execute their game plan at the best level possible.

UCF last faced West Virginia in 2025 on its home court at Hope Coliseum, losing 72-65. Witness the Knights fight for a different outcome at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 14, at the Addition Financial Arena.