BOCA RATON (FAUSports.com) — Coming off a huge win over Louisiana Tech Thursday night, the Florida Atlantic University men’s basketball team will look to stay hot at home Saturday afternoon when the Southern Miss Golden Eagles visit The Burrow.
The Owls have won eight straight at home and will look to extend that streak to nine Saturday.
FAU is averaging 81.1 points per game during the nine-game home winning streak, while allowing just 62.6 points per game. The Owls’ home winning streak dates back to Dec. 1.
FAU is in the thick of the race for the Conference USA East Division championship. Middle Tennessee is currently in first place when using winning percentage as the differentiator. The Owls and Blue Raiders would be tied using the games back method, with MTSU at 5-2 and FAU at 6-3.
FAU is 13-9 overall and 6-3 in Conference USA. FAU’s top mark for C-USA victories in a season is eight (2018-19). The Owls have nine conference games remaining this season. Southern Miss enters the contest 6-17 overall and 1-7 in league play. The Golden Eagles have lost four straight.
The FAU-Southern Miss tilt will be heard in the South Florida area on Fox Sports 640 AM and will be streamed on ESPN+.
Cleaning the Glass
Rebounding has been a point of emphasis for the Owls the last two seasons. The Owls are No. 1 in CUSA and No. 48 in the nation in rebound margin at +5.2. In 18 of 22 games this year, FAU has tied or outrebounded the opposition. FAU has owned the rebounding edge by 10 or more seven times, with a high of +17 (at UNM).
Home Sweet Home
In the Dusty May era, FAU has been very successful on Abessinio Court. When playing at The Burrow, the Owls have won more than 77 percent of their contests under May (41-12, .773). FAU has been even better on its home floor since May’s first season. Since 2019, FAU is 32-6 at FAU Arena for an .842 winning percentage.
The Owls are currently in the midst of an eight-game home winning streak.
Take Two, They’re Free
FAU struggled a bit from the free throw line last season, converting at a .661 clip. The Owls have improved that greatly this season, currently converting at a rate of .710 from the charity stripe. FAU was 21-of-27 (.778) from the line Thursday.
Last Time Out – FAU 83, La Tech 73
Fueled by a red-hot start and solid free-throw shooting down the stretch, the Florida Atlantic University men’s basketball team defeated Louisiana Tech 83-73 Thursday night at FAU Arena. It was the eighth straight home victory for the Owls.
FAU was 9-of-11 from the floor over the first seven minutes of the contest, grabbing a 20-9 lead. Alijah Martin was a catalyst to the quick start for the Owls, scoring 11 points in less than eight minutes to start the game, giving him 12 straight games in double figures.
FAU (13-9, 6-3 CUSA) continued to pour it on. A 12-2 offensive outburst midway through the opening 20 minutes gave the Owls their largest lead of the game, 37-17.
“The ball found the open guy. We moved it well,” FAU head coach Dusty May said. “We cut hard, with purpose. We played a really, really good first 15 minutes, offensively.”
Louisiana Tech (17-7, 7-3 CUSA) chipped away at its deficit, but could get no closer than 44-30 at the intermission. The 14-point halftime lead matched the Owls’ biggest lead at halftime all season.
FAU scored the first four points of the second half to go on top by 18 points. But Louisiana Tech, picked by many experts to finish in the top two of C-USA, wouldn’t go quietly. The Bulldogs strung together an 11-3 run to pull back within single digits, just six minutes into the second half.
La Tech used that offensive spurt to put themselves in position for a big comeback. With FAU leading 53-42, the Bulldogs’ star big man Kenneth Lofton Jr. scored five of his team’s next eight points. The other three came off a 3-pointer from Amorie Archibald, pulling Louisiana Tech within two possessions, 55-49, with 11:22 remaining.
But the Owls answered with layups from Vlad Goldin and Bryan Greenlee to push the lead back to 10 points, 59-49. From there, Louisiana Tech never got closer than nine. The Owls hit 13-of-14 free-throw attempts over the final 2:07 to preserve the 83-73 victory.
“In the second half, they (Louisiana Tech) came out with the mindset they were going to turn it into a streetfight,” May said. “They were sending more guys to the glass and challenging to rebound and score in transition. Once we were able to settle in, we were able to do the same thing to them in the second half and that allowed us to separate.”
Martin scored 17 points in the first half and finished with a game-high 21. He also lead the Owls with eight rebounds. Three other FAU players scored in double digits, as Michael Forrest scored 20, including four 3-pointers. Greenlee scored 19, including 8-of-12 free throws, while dishing out three assists. Goldin added 10 points and was a presence on the defensive end with three blocked shots.
