Orlando, FL — Freshmen guards James "J-Bird" Daniel and James "JT" Miller have been ruled out of tomorrow's non-conference game against the University of Central Florida.  The game tips off at 7 pm at the UCF Arena and will be carried on ESPN3.

Daniel, the team leading scorer with 20.5 points per game reinjured his toe in the first half during the loss to Morgan State on Saturday while Miller aggravated his right knee that has hampered him all season.  Miller is out indefinitely and Daniel will be game to game.

"It is definitely a blow to us," said Howard Coach Kevin Nickelberry.  "We are talking about the future backcourt for this team.  "But right now the important thing is making sure that they completely heal so that we can ensure that future."

The freshmen are two of the more talented newcomers in the exceptional class of nine that Nickelberry has brought in.  Daniel, a 5-11 native of Hampton, VA, has led the team in scoring in five games.  He has scored in double figures in all 11 games and is shooting a team best 42 percent from three-point range and 82 percent from the free throw line.  He has also demonstrated his ability as a playmaker after being moved to the point guard, recording 10 assists in the past three games.

Miller, a 6-4 wing guard, has not been unable to get untracked and demonstrate in talent.  His best game came against where he scored 10 points off the bench against Old Dominion.

Rather than view their loss as a setback, Nickelberry sees it as an opportunity for other players.

"Keon Hill (red-shirt freshman) will start in place of J-Bird," said Nickelberry.  "This will give him, Solomon Mangham, Kofi Andoh and Marcel Boyd a chance to offset the loss of Miller and J-Bird."  Mangham, Andoh and Boyd are all freshmen.

Nickelberry went on to single out Boyd as a key contributor to the team the rest of the season.  The 6-10 center from Accokeek, MD is beginning to come on strong of late.  He had his best outing against American University with his first double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds.  In the loss to Morgan State, he got his first start and was hampered by early foul trouble, but still managed to score nine points and grab six rebounds.  He leads the team in rebounding and is second in blocked shots with 11.

"He is beginning to establish himself as one of the better freshman post players in the conference," noted Nickelberry.  "We have to keep him out of foul trouble so that he can be a factor against UCF, but more importantly for the rest of the season."

The one constant of late for the Bison has been the play of Prince Okoroh. The 6-5 junior forward from Greenbelt, MD, has averaged 25 points in the past three games, including a career-best 40 points against William and Mary.  As the only starter from last year on the squad, Okoroh is having his best season, second on the team in scoring and rebounding and first in steals (26).
In the Knights (4-3), the young Bison will again face a veteran team with balanced scoring.  They are led by Calvin Newell (17 ppg), Isaiah Sykes (16 ppg) and Tristan Spurlock (12.9 ppg), who average double figures in scoring.

The two teams met last year in the first round of the UCF Classic and the Knights came away with a 62-45 victory.

Howard will have a short turnaround when it travels to take on Fordham University on Saturday and Delaware State in the Big Apple Classic at the Barclays Center on Sunday at 6 pm.