BOCA RATON, Fla. – (Dec. 4, 2019) The Florida Atlantic University men’s basketball team outlasted Canisius 62-59 on Wednesday night. The win is the 350th in program history and the Owls improved to 5-4 on the year.
How It Happened
The game was a slugfest from start to finish, with neither team holding a lead larger than six points all night. FAU led by five on two different occasions in the first half, but both times, Canisius (4-4) rallied to eventually take the lead.
Madiaw Niang hit a pair from the free throw line to give the Owls a 26-25 lead with 5:45 remaining in the first half. In that 5:45, there were eight lead changes and six ties. The final lead change occurred when Everett Winchester made two free throws to send FAU into intermission leading 39-37.
The Owls were able to maintain a small lead for most of the second half, despite stiff resistance from the Golden Griffins. Canisius trimmed the margin to two with 38 seconds left, but couldn’t get any closer, missing a potential go-ahead 3-pointer. Karlis Silins was fouled and split his trip to the charity stripe, and the Golden Griffins’ desperation heave was offline.
Notables
- Silins had a season-high 15 points to go along with seven rebounds. It was his fourth double-digit scoring game of the year
- Kenan Blackshear put together another solid performance. The freshman scored nine points, pulled down seven rebounds (including four on the offensive end), dished out two assists and had a block
- The Owls’ perimeter defense held Canisius to 38.2 percent shooting from the floor and just one made 3-pointer, both season lows for FAU opponents
- FAU improved to 17-5 under Dusty May when leading at halftime
Quotable
FAU Head Coach Dusty May
“Karlis played really hard, came up with toughness rebounds…he played a really good game.”
“You have to figure out a way to win (on a) particular night and I thought our guys did that.”
FAU Center Karlis Silins
On making his late free throw…
“I’m glad that made one of the two (free throws) and put the game away, but I have to keep working and getting better on my free throws.”
On the team playing so many close games…
“It’s preparing us for where we want to be at the end of the year. At the end of the year, (close) games like those are not uncommon, so I think it’s great for us. It’s a little nerve-wracking, but I think in the bigger picture, it’s great for us.
What’s Next
The Owls will take time off for exams before hosting High Point on Saturday, Dec. 14. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. Live video and live stats will be available at fausports.com. The game can be heard on FOX Sports 640AM. Live updates will be posted to the team’s official Twitter account,@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.
