Four Owls scored double-digits in the win
Next Game:
at North Texas
1/14/2023 | 4:30 p.m.
BOCA RATON, Fla. – The Florida Atlantic women’s basketball team (10-4, 3-2 C-USA) snapped a two-game skid and earned a season sweep over the FIU Panthers (8-6, 3-2 C-USA) after a 76-66 win on Wednesday inside the Ocean Bank Convocation Center.
“Really proud of this group,” expressed head coach Jennifer Sullivan. “Going on the road, FIU was really rolling coming into this game, and for us to execute the gameplan at a high level and finish through adversity was really big. I was excited about how we did on the boards, we outrebounded them by a high margin, which was big going into this game. We tried our best to control the pace of the game, by playing fast. Proud by contributions across the board, our bench was huge tonight, and excited about the place we’re in.”
For the sixth time this season, Aniya Hubbard did Aniya Hubbard things, leading the Owls with 17 points, shooting 44 percent (7-of-16) from the field, while also recording a career-high eight steals, tying a career-high five assists, and pulling down five rebounds. Joiya Maddox also had a fantastic performance for the Owls, turning in a career-best 15 points, shooting 42 percent (5-of-12) from the field, 33 percent (2-of-6) from 3-point range, and 75 percent (3-of-4) from the line. Maddox also recorded a career-best nine rebounds and added an assist. Sofia Galeron and Alexa Zaph rounded out the Owls double-digit scorers, posting 12 points and 11 points, respectively. Galeron shot a game-best 4-of-5 (80 percent) from 3-point range, while Zaph connected on a perfect 100 percent (6-of-6) from the free throw line.
FIU opened the contest with back-to-back baskets to quickly take a 5-0 lead through the first minute of play. Aniya Hubbard and Janeta Rozentale traded baskets for the Owls, producing an 8-2 run to quickly close the gap and give FAU its first lead of the contest, 8-7, at the 6:47-minute mark of the opening period. The Owls and Panthers battled through three lead changes and just as many ties, before a 3-pointer from Sofia Galeron, with 31 seconds to play, gave the Owls a three-point advantage to close the first, 19-16.
The Panthers opened scoring in the second with a 3-pointer to bring the game even once again at 19, but a pair of jumpers from Ajalon Gillard and one from Hubbard pushed the Owls lead back to six, 25-19, with 8:22 remaining in the half. Over the next three minutes of clock, FIU outscored FAU 5-4 to cut the Owls’ lead down to five, 29-24, but FAU responded with four unanswered to close out the half and send the Owls into the locker room up by nine, 33-24.
The Owls scored first in the second half off a Rozentale layup at the 8:48-minute mark to give FAU its first double-digit lead of the contest, 35-24. FIU kept trying to battle the Owls, holding FAU to a 10-point advantage, 40-30, with 5:53 in the third. However, over the final five minutes of the third, the Owls outscored FIU 14-9 to kick the Owls’ lead back out to 15 entering the final period of play.
FIU attempted to rally over the first five minutes of the fourth, producing a 15-5 run to cut the FAU lead down to just five, 59-54. The Owls maintained a six-point advantage with 2:53 to play, 64-58, but the Owls’ finished the game clutch down the stretch, connecting on 12-of-12 free throws, over the final three minutes of play, to outscore FIU 12-8 and close out the 76-66 win.
NOTES AND TEAM STATS
- Four Owls scored double-digits in the win
- Aniya Hubbard posted her sixth team-leading performance of the season, scoring a game-high 17 points, shooting 44 percent (7-of-16) from the field, in addition to recording a career-best eight steals, while also tying a career-high five assists, and grabbing five rebounds.
- Joiya Maddox finished with a career-high 15 points, shooting 42 percent (5-of-12) from the field, 33 percent (2-of-6) from 3-point range, and 75 percent (3-of-4) from the line, while also adding a career-best in rebounds and an assist.
- Sofia Galeron scored a team third-best 12 points, connecting on 80 percent (4-of-5) from 3-point range
- Alexa Zaph tallied 11 points, shooting a perfect 100 percent (6-of-6) from the free throw line.
- The Owls dominated in rebounds, outrebounding the Panthers 48-34, including an impressive 20-10 advantage on the offensive glass.
- FAU also found success in second-chance opportunities and got a lot of production off the bench, outscoring the Panthers 17-6 in second chance points and 30-17 in points off the bench.
- The Owls also had most of their success in the second and third quarters, outscoring FIU 35-23 in both quarters combined.
UP NEXT
The Owls close out their four-game road stretch on Saturday, visiting the North Texas Mean Green for their second matchup of the season on Saturday, January 14 for a 4:30 p.m. ET tipoff at The Super Pit.
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