Davis’ Career-High 36 Points Lift FAU Over UAB

BOCA RATON, Fla. – Johnell Davis put forward an incredible performance with a career-high 36 points to lift Florida Atlantic University to an 88-86 victory over UAB on Thursday night. The Owls improve to 13-1 and 3-0 in Conference USA while extending their school-record winning streak to 12 games. The Blazers dip to 12-3 and 3-1 in C-USA play, while the Owls take over first place in the C-USA standings.

Davis’ 36 points are the fourth-most in a single game in FAU history and are only three off the Owls’ school record of 39, set by DeAndre Rice in 2007. The sophomore guard shot 11-of-17 (64.7%) from the field, 4-of-6 (66.7%) from 3-point range and 10-of-11 (90.9%) from the free throw line.

The Owls and Blazers were in a seesaw battle, in a game that featured 18 lead changes and 14 ties. With 3:48 left, UAB held an 82-76 lead and the Owls had their backs against the wall for the second game in a row. But, for the second game in a row, FAU showed resiliency and mental fortitude down the stretch and ended the game with a 12-4 run.

Giancarlo Rosado scored a put back lay-up to cut the deficit to four with over three minutes to play. After FAU got a stop, Davis was fouled and hit a pair of free throws to make it 82-80. Davis put the team on his back down the stretch, scoring the final eight points for the Owls. Another Davis lay-up tied it at 82-82 with 51 seconds left, then the FAU defense forced a turnover on Jordan Walker. The Owl hot hand continued to attack the bucket, and Davis hit two free throws to make it 84-82 with 51 seconds remaining.

UAB tied it with a Javian Davis jumper with 28 seconds remaining, yet FAU’s Davis was not phased. He saw a lane and attacked the bucket, scoring with 15 seconds left on a strong take to put FAU ahead 86-84. UAB turned it over again on the next possession, and who but Johnell Davis hit the last two free throws to make it a four-point lead, one that FAU would not relinquish.

The Owls entered the game at No. 12 in the NCAA Net Rankings and are receiving votes in both the AP Top 25 and USA Today Coaches poll for the first time in school history.

QUOTES FROM COACH MAY

“I’m very proud of the resiliency of our guys,” head coach Dusty May said. “I’m very proud that we were able to go 18-21 from the free throw line and do the job we did on the defensive glass, especially being undersized. It’s a testament to our guys’ toughness, their grit, being quick to the ball, and just the good old-fashioned one-two. We’re going to have to win in different ways in this league, UAB is an extremely talented, well-coached basketball team. We’re very proud to get this one, but there’s not much time to celebrate. Saturday at 2 p.m. is a quick turnaround, we have to get prepared, but we’re very pleased with our effort tonight.”

STATS & NOTES

FAU shot 49.2% (30-of-61) from the floor as well as 85.7% (18-of-21) from the free throw line
Davis added six rebounds in addition to his career-high 36 points
Bryan Greenlee recorded 12 points and hit 4-of-7 from the field
Alijah Martin was big on the glass, recording a career-high 10 rebounds in addition to his six points. Martin was the only player on either team to hit double-digit rebounds tonight
Rosado, Nick Boyd, and Vladislav Goldin each finished with eight points
Jalen Gaffney tallied a game-high six assists
The Owls won the rebounding battle, 39-30, and had 17 second chance points compared to the Blazers’ 10
FAU also dominated in bench points, 56-32. The Owls had the third-highest scoring bench in the country entering tonight’s game