After a devastating loss at Marshall last week – SMU lost on a 70-foot buzzer-beater – head coach Matt Doherty had some advice for his team.

“You’ve got to be focused, play with extra effort and extra concentration [on the road]. It’s a different environment, but you’ve got to be able to overcome that.”

The Mustangs (6-11 Conference USA, 1-4) will need that focus as they hit the road this week and attempt to climb out of the conference cellar. The Mustangs play the University of Central Florida Knights (13-6, 3-2) tonight at 6 p.m. before another tough test at the University of Tulsa (13-7, 3-2) on Saturday.

As SMU enters the toughest stretch of the season – the next four conference games are against the top four teams in Conference USA – it is perhaps the worst time for a road trip.

SMU has a history of struggling on the road during conference play, posting a 1-7 record in each of the past two seasons, and has yet to post a road win this season.

However, SMU has shown promise in the last two games. This past Saturday, in a loss to East Carolina, the Mustangs gave their strongest offensive effort so far in conference play. Senior center Bamba Fall emerged as the leader that Doherty has been looking for.

The Knights are led by senior guard Jermaine Taylor. who leads conference at 23.7 points per game. The Knights lead the conference in field goal percentage at 46.7 percent and are shooting 38.2 percent from 3-point range. This will prove to be a challenge for the Mustangs, as their difficulties defending the three allowed East Carolina to pull away late in the second half on Saturday.