DENTON, Texas – Florida Atlantic women’s basketball (5-9, 0-3 AAC) could not overcome another slow start as the Owls fell to North Texas (12-3, 2-1 AAC) on Sunday inside the Super Pit.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Janeta Rozentale laid it in to put the Owls on the board first, 2-0, just a minute and 35 seconds into the contest, however North Texas scored 10 unanswered to lead by eight, 10-2, with under five minutes left in the first. A Jada Moore free throw kept the Owls within nine, 14-5, with 2:25 to go in the period, but the Mean Green closed the frame on a 6-2 run to take a 13-point advantage after one, 20-7.
The Owls’ defensive struggles continued in the second quarter as North Texas outscored the Owls 25-12 over the 10-minute stretch to hold a 26-point advantage heading into the break, 45-19.
The Mean Green opened the second half on a 4-0 run to extend their lead to 49-19. The Owls then produced a 10-2 run over the following two minutes of clock to cut the deficit down to 22, 51-29, with 5:27 to play in the third. However, the Mean Green answered back, closing the third on a 17-9 run to extend their lead back to 30, 68-38, heading into the final 10 minutes of play.
Florida Atlantic just couldn’t find an answer to the North Texas’ offensive attack as the Mean Green outscored the Owls 18-14 in the final stanza to close out the 86-52 contest.
HEAD COACH JENNIFER SULLIVAN POSTGAME THOUGHTS
“Disappointing game. Just another game in which we had a slow start to get things going. It was also not one of our best defensive performances. We really struggled to get stops and we just can’t afford games like this. Across the board, I don’t know if there are a lot of positive takeaways from this game, except we just need to regroup and get better. But that was a disappointing performance and we talked about being on the road for a long road swing and grind it out in game two and find a way to keep the game close, but that will be what we reflect on this week.”
NOTES AND TEAM STATS
- Jada Moore and Janeta Rozentale led the Owls in the contest.
- Moore scored a career-high 21 points, shooting 67 percent (10-of-15) from the field, while also adding five boards, an assist, and a steal.
- Rozentale was the Owls defensive leader, pulling down a team-best 11 boards, in addition to scoring four points and dishing out a pair of assists.
- The Owls did hold the advantage in second-chance points, outscoring the Mean Green 11-9.
UP NEXT
The Owls return home this next week for a two-game homestretch, beginning Wednesday, Jan. 10 against the UTSA Roadrunners. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. inside Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena and on ESPN+.
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