Finney leads Knights in Jones’ absence

A familiar face has been absent, but it has been business as usual for the Knights.

With head coach Donnie Jones suspended for the first three games of conference play, a proactive measure mandated by the university in response to the NCAA allegations released in November, UCF players and coaches have responded well.

Associate head coach Shawn Finney has assumed Jones' duties for the time being, coaching the Knights (12-3, 2-0) to two consecutive victories to open up their Conference USA slate.

After beating Tulane (12-4, 0-2) at home on Wednesday, 60-53, the Knights went on the road Saturday night and soundly defeated East Carolina (9-6, 0-2), 81-63, notching their first road win of the season.

It was an impressive win for a number of reasons, not the least of which was the contest's role as a measuring stick for how far the team has come this season. Not only had UCF dropped its first two road games at Florida State and Louisiana-Lafayette, but the Knights had also struggled to comfortably close out opponents and notch big victories.

That wasn't the case Saturday, though, as UCF consistently held off runs as the Pirates attempted to rally back. Indeed, a 19-4 run by the Knights to start the second half eventually proved to be the story of the game.

"I thought we played with much more poise [today]," Finney said in his radio interview afterward on the UCF IMG Network. "Our guys stayed focused and poised and got [the lead] back up to where we wanted it. … We were just really in the flow at that point [during the 19-4 run]."

Multiple players shared the spotlight. Sophomore guard Isaiah Sykes finished with a double-double, scoring 20 points to lead UCF and adding in 10 rebounds. A.J. Rompza dominated the first half, scoring 14 of his 16 points before the break. The senior point guard also came up just short of a triple-double, dishing out nine assists and seven rebounds to go with his scoring effort.

Finally, in only his junior year, forward Keith Clanton joined UCF's "1,000-points club," notching the achievement in the second half on a 3-pointer. Clanton finished with 16 points on the night.

It was the second successful effort in Jones' absence, as the program has responded to being without their leader.

"It's definitely a little bit different [without coach Jones], but in practice everybody has a vocal part in helping us get better and coach Finney and coach [Tim] Thomas definitely have a part in that," junior guard Marcus Jordan said.

Finney credited the preparation the program utilized, as the suspension was known in November.

"Coach Jones really prepared this team to play without any coach," Finney said.

Finney was a head coach previously, ironically enough having roamed the sidelines for Tulane from 2000-05, but the former ESPN television analyst said it was still an adjustment calling the shots again.

"It's obviously different because the last five years I've been an assistant coach," Finney said. "I've been sitting over there with a different agenda, not calling every play but making suggestions. Tonight I had to make decisions versus suggestions."

On Saturday, Finney's decision-making proved valuable.

The Knights tried utilizing a zone, something they've had a lot of success with this season, but East Carolina seemed to thrive against it. ECU's Miguel Paul, who finished with a game-high 21 points, shot well from the perimeter, in addition to other Pirates. Finney made the decision to switch back to a man-to-man defense, a decision that paid dividends, most notably during UCF's big 19-4 run.

Jones said having Finney to fill in for him during this time period has helped him handle a difficult situation.

"It's a huge advantage having somebody like Shawn in there because our chemistry is so good," Jones said in a release. "I have such confidence in him. As good as you can feel about not being at a game, I feel good knowing Shawn is there coaching the team."

The Knights will return to action on Wednesday, coming home to the UCF Arena to take on the Houston Cougars (9-6, 1-1). UCF will look to go 3-0 in league play to start the "second season" in its sole regular season meeting with the Cougars. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.