Homestand wasted, losing streak continues

Some things don't always go according to plan.

What looked like an ample opportunity for the Knights to rebound after two tough road losses instead took a turn for the worse, as the Knights dropped both home contests this past week against East Carolina and Rice.

Make it four straight losses.

As UCF continues its search for answers, they are now faced with the unenviable task of attempting to get back into the win column on the road at Conference USA powerhouse Memphis.

Many problems are facing the Knights as this trend continues, but one that sticks out is the team's lack of cohesion on offense.

"I think they're pressing hard, with the way they are offensively," said head coach Donnie Jones. "As a coach, we give them freedom to play. It's not different than what we've done when we won 14 (in a row)."

The Knights offensive strengths, so rampant in the beginning of the season, have gone up in smoke. A team that was once able to score points, and lots of them, is now struggling to make simple shots.

During Saturday's game against Rice, the Knights went more than ten minutes without a field goal and shot 30 percent for the night from the field. During Thursday's loss against ECU, the Knights shot a dismal 44 percent from the free throw line.

Those are troubling signs for a team that was just recently ranked among the nation's top-20 teams.

"Our guys have got to find a way to overcome adversity and we haven't," said Jones.

Jones is concerned about the runs his team has allowed other teams to go on, including a 15-1 run Saturday night that put the Owls in control about midway through the second half. East Carolina was able to go on an 18-4 run on Wednesday.

All things considered, it adds up to some serious questions about the Knights' ability to generate points. Teams are picking up on ways to defend Marcus Jordan, UCF's go-to guy, and it appears to be stifling the offense.

"For some reason, we're not able to score," said Jones. "And Marcus is not scoring, you get no field goals from him tonight, it makes it very hard for our basketball team to get shots. And other guys have had them … We're just not making them."

The lack of production from the supporting cast is especially frustrating for the coaching staff because the team is capable of more and has been practicing well, according to Jones.

"If we could just transfer what we do in practice to the games, we'd be fine," Jones said. "Right now, when the lights get kicked on, our guys are not competing. We play hard, but we're just not being able to execute and make shots."

The Knights' lack of execution leaves little room to be optimistic about the outlook for the rest of the season. People around the program recognize the team is better than this. Whether it's tweaking play calling, deciding whether to press, or shuffling line-ups, Jones says changes are on the way to the Knight's season.

"Our basketball team, we'll make some changes," Jones said. "It's time for things to change in this lineup and on this team. We'll see that on Wednesday."

Until the Knights escape this streak, the gut-check period continues.