BOCA RATON, Fla. – The Florida Atlantic University men’s basketball team did it again. The Owls appeared to be in trouble against North Texas on Saturday, trailing 51-45 with 12:43 to play in a slugfest. As they have all season long, the Owls showed their poise down the stretch and came away with a 66-62 victory to remain undefeated at 6-0 in Conference USA.
The Owls keep their standing in first place in C-USA and stretch their winning streak to 15 games, which is the second-longest in the nation this season (Charleston, 17 games). FAU also remains undefeated at home, with an 11-0 mark in Paradise this season. The Owls’ fans came out in a record crowd of 3,060 in a sellout to watch FAU improve to 16-1 on the season.
FAU’s defense put the clamps on the Mean Green down the stretch, holding North Texas without a bucket in the final 2:50, and North Texas only scored one point in that time. With the Owls holding a one-point lead, Giancarlo Rosado scored in the paint off a Nick Boyd assist. After North Texas’ last bucket, Johnell Davis came through with a clutch basket to push the lead to 64-61 with 2:23 left.
With 31 seconds to play, the Mean Green got an offensive rebound after a free throw made it 64-62, yet the Owls got a stop and Vladislav Goldin came up with the big rebound. Goldin iced it with two free throws to seal the deal and give FAU the massive victory.
QUOTES FROM COACH MAY
“What a great college basketball game,” FAU head coach Dusty May said. “It was a battle between two teams that were very determined, two competitive teams. It was a slugfest. We thought for 30 minutes, they were the more physical and aggressive team, and then the last 10 minutes, our guys really tightened up defensively, were active in the gaps and made plays…This group is very poised, they’re together. Even when there’s friction, they stay together and love each other and support each other. That’s a sign of a really good team.”
STATS & NOTES
- The Owls sweep the Mean Green for the first time since 2018-19, May’s first year at the helm of the program. This season, FAU has handed North Texas two of its four losses
- FAU found a way to win despite North Texas shooting a season-high 57.1% (12-of-21) from beyond the arc
- The Owls’ defense forced 16 Mean Green turnovers, with five of those being shot clock violations
- Davis led FAU in scoring once again for the third-straight game with 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the floor. Davis has been FAU’s leading scorer in three of the last four C-USA games
- Goldin scored 12 points and added eight rebounds, while shooting 6-of-8 from the free throw line
- Rosado was big off the bench, scoring 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting from the floor with four rebounds
- Alijah Martin added nine points and three rebounds, while Boyd recorded eight points and five rebounds
- The Owls bench, which remains No. 1 in the country, scored 38 points compared to North Texas’ 13
THREE-GAME ROAD TRIP
The Owls will embark on a three-game road trip, with the first one on the slate being at WKU on Monday, Jan. 16. The Owls will then travel to Texas to face UTSA on Jan. 19 then UTEP on Jan. 21.
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