| 3/6/2024 | Men’s Basketball DENTON, Texas – In their final road matchup of the regular season, the Florida Atlantic men’s basketball team (23-7, 13-4 AAC) took down North Texas (16-13, 9-8 AAC) for the second time this year on Wednesday night by a score of 80-76.Facing a UNT team that ranked seventh in the nation in points allowed (62.0 per game), the Owls scored the second most points and tied for the highest field goal percentage (53.2%) out of any Mean Green opponent this season. Junior guard Johnell Davis led FAU with another elite performance, scoring 29 points on 10-for-15 shooting from the field. Currently number two in the American Athletic Conference standings, the Owls remain in position to have a bye in the AAC Tournament, held from Mar. 13 through 17. FIRST HALF The Owls got off to a hot start on both sides of the ball. Senior guard Brandon Weatherspoon knocked down a quick three, Davis followed up two more from downtown, and junior guard Alijah Martin added one of his own to build a 12-0 lead over the opening three minutes. North Texas was held without a field goal for the opening five, but soon found their offensive rhythm. But their defense was no match for a dominating half from Davis, who dropped 21 points on 8-for-12 shooting. Only two Owls had more than one field goal in the opening frame. Joining Davis was junior big man Giancarlo Rosado, who scored nine points. FAU held the lead for most of the half, but a last-second foul from beyond halfcourt gave UNT three free throws and a slight 42-40 lead entering the locker room. SECOND HALF No stranger to second half comebacks, the Owls overcame a seven-point deficit with a 10-0 run, culminating with junior center Vlad Goldin’s leaping for a slam dunk that drew a foul in the process. In a half where neither team could quite break away, sophomore guard Nick Boyd scored eight straight points and a wide-open triple from sophomore forward Brenen Lorient grew the lead to six. The lead was cut to three with just under three minutes left to play, but the Owls closed it out with clutch scores inside by Goldin and Davis as the shot clock wound down as well as free throws from Boyd. QUOTABLE Head Coach Dusty May “We knew we had a dogfight in front of us and fortunately we made the plays we needed to, the two late shot clock possessions were astronomical.” Junior Guard Johnell Davis “I saw the first [shot] go in, Spoon (Brandon Weatherspoon) hit me in the corner and got me going and then I went from there.” STATS & NOTES Davis finishes his regular season series against the Mean Green averaging 28.5 points on 58% shooting from the field and 69.2% from three-point range. This marks the third regular season sweep for the Owls, also taking care of Wichita State and Tulane twice Florida Atlantic has now shot 50% or better from the field in 12 games Boyd made nine free throws out of his 10 attempts, both career highs. All 13 of his points came in the second half Goldin was ubiquitous at the rim, scoring 11 points on 5-for-6 shooting with four blocks on the defensive end The Owls once again tied their season high in blocks with five In just nine minutes of work, Lorient nabbed a career high five rebounds UP NEXT The Owls will close out their regular season on Saturday with their second matchup against Memphis, this time at Boca Raton’s Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena. The game will be aired nationally on CBS, tipping off at 12 p.m. EST. Fans are asked to WEAR RED. It will also be Senior Day, honoring Bryan Greenlee, Jalen Gaffney, and Weatherspoon for their contributions to the program. FOLLOW THE OWLS To stay up to date on all things FAU men’s basketball, follow the Owls on social media @FAUMBB.Florida Atlantic’s 2023-24 season is sponsored by Phil Smith Kia/Phil Smith Acura. |
