12/11/2020 | Men’s Basketball
BOCA RATON — The FAU men’s basketball team will face Florida Memorial University Saturday at Abessinio Court at FAU Arena. The Owls were scheduled to travel to North Carolina State for a matchup with the Wolfpack Saturday, but the game will not be played due to Covid-19 positives and contact tracing protocols in the NC State program. Shortly after the cancellation of the trip to Raleigh, N.C., FAU inked a deal to host FMU at The Burrow.
FAU is now 3-2 after a road win over North Florida Monday night in Jacksonville. Five Owls scored in double figures vs. the Ospreys, paced by Karlis Silins’ career-best-tying 19 points and Jailyn Ingram’s first double-double of the season (13 points, 10 rebounds). It was a back-and-forth affair for much of the night. UNF had an opportunity to tie or win at the buzzer, but the Owls locked down on defense and didn’t allow a good look at the basket to hang on for the victory.
Florida Memorial, which plays in the NAIA, will count Saturday’s contest as an exhibition game while it will count toward FAU’s overall record. The Lions are currently 2-5 in regular season action and played an exhibition contest at Florida International University Thursday night in Miami.
Cleaning The Glass
Offensive rebounding has been a point of emphasis for the FAU coaching staff and the squad early in the 2020-21 season. The message has apparently been received. The Owls rank No. 2 in Conference USA and No. 17 in the nation in offensive rebounds per game, averaging 14.8 per contest.
Those offensive rebounds have led to the Owls to an edge in second-chance points in four of five games this season.
J.I. Doubles Down
Jailyn Ingram has scored in double digits in each of his last three outings. He added 10 rebounds Monday at North Florida to record his first double-double of the season and the ninth of his career. He is the most prolific current Owl in the category of double-doubles.
Ingram has also joined an exclusive FAU club. In the season-opener, he became just the fourth Owl ever to score 1000 points and and grab 500 rebounds. See the chart on Page 4 of the Game Notes for more details.
Silins Shows Out
Karlis Silins turned in one of the most effective offensive outings of his FAU career Monday at North Florida. Silins was 8-of-10 from the floor and matched his career-best with 19 points.
On Tap: Heading to the Hatters
The Owls will head back out on the road Tuesday. FAU will face off with Stetson University in Deland, Fla. in a 7 p.m. tip. The Hatters are currently 0-4 on the season, with losses to Emmanuel College, Miami, Florida and USF. Stetson is scheduled to face Florida College Thursday.
FAU and Stetson have not faced off on the hardwood since 2014.
Stetson leads the all-time series with FAU by a tally of 18-16. The Owls are 5-11 on the road vs. the Hatters. This will be the second game for FAU against an Atlantic Sun Conference opponent after facing UNF earlier this week.
