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FAU Men’s Basketball Closes Regular Season with 76-61 Loss to Marshall
HUNTINGTON, W. Va. – (March 9, 2019) – The Florida Atlantic University men’s basketball team couldn’t withstand a rally by Marshall, falling to the Thundering Herd 76-61 on Saturday. The Owls conclude the regular season with a 17-14 overall record and 8-10 in Conference USA.
The Start
Four different players made baskets as the Owls scored the first 11 points of the game. Back-to-back three-pointers by Michael Forrest and Aleksandar Zecevic increased the FAU lead to 19-2 just seven minutes into the contest. Marshall (18-13, 11-7) made a modest rally, before Xavian Stapleton scored a layup that gave the Owls a 28-14 lead at the eight-minute mark.
The Turning Point
The Thundering Herd ended the half on a 14-0 run, tying the score 28-28 at the break. Momentum shifted several times early in the second half, as the lead changed hands five times in six and a half minutes. Marshall seized control with a 13-3 scoring spurt that put the Owls behind 56-46 with 12 minutes remaining.
The Finish
A FAU scoring drought increased the margin to as many as 18 late in the game. Forrest’s third three-pointer of the game accounted for the final score.
Notables
· Michael Forrest led the Owls with 15 points, he also collected three rebounds
· Xavian Stapleton scored 13 points and added five rebounds, two steals, a block and an assist
· Anthony Adger had 12 points, pulled down five boards, snagged two steals and an assist. He also made a pair three-pointers, giving him 87 for the season, passing Greg Gantt for sole possession of the third highest single-season total in FAU history
· FAU was perfect in eight attempts at the free throw line, while Marshall made 18 of its 24 tries.
· The Owls grabbed 30 rebounds in the game. FAU has a school record 1,231 rebounds on the year.
· FAU made seven three-pointers against Marshall, its total now 273 for the season, another school record.
Quotable
FAU Head Coach Dusty May
“We’re a work in progress…but we’ve got to make shots, especially with the attention our bigs are getting inside.”
Up Next
The Owls will wait to find out who will be their first round opponent in the C-USA Tournament. Stay tuned.
Social Media
For complete coverage of FAU men’s basketball, follow us on Twitter and Instagram (@FAU_Hoops).
– FAUSports.com –
Florida Atlantic University Athletics:
FAU Athletics is comprised of 21 intercollegiate teams involving 450 student-athletes that compete in baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, soccer, softball, swimming and diving, tennis, indoor and outdoor track, volleyball, beach volleyball, cheer and dance. The Owls are a NCAA Division I-A (FBS) institution and compete in Conference USA and the Coastal Collegiate Sports Association (CCSA) (beach volleyball, men’s swimming). The Owls have been playing football since 2001 and are a perfect 3-0 in bowl games, the most recent being a 50-3 victory over Akron in the 2017 Cheribundi Tart Cherry Boca Raton Bowl. The dance team finished its 2014 season No. 8, nationally. FAU cheer won a national championship in 2016.
About Florida Atlantic University:
Florida Atlantic University, established in 1961, officially opened its doors in 1964 as the fifth public university in Florida. Today, the University, with an annual economic impact of $6.3 billion, serves more than 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students at sites throughout its six county service region in southeast Florida. FAU’s world-class teaching and research faculty serves students through 10 colleges: the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, the College of Business, the College for Design and Social Inquiry, the College of Education, the College of Engineering and Computer Science, the Graduate College, the Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine, the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing and the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science. FAU is ranked as a High Research Activity institution by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The University is placing special focus on the rapid development of critical areas that form the basis of its strategic plan: Healthy aging, biotech, coastal and marine issues, neuroscience, regenerative medicine, informatics, lifespan and the environment. These areas provide opportunities for faculty and students to build upon FAU’s existing strengths in research and scholarship. For more information, visit www.fau.edu.
