BOCA RATON, Fla. – The Florida Atlantic University women’s basketball team (7-9, 5-7 Conference USA) will host Southern Miss this weekend for the Owls’ last home games of the season. FAU will look to extend its home winning streak to four games, while beating a Southern Miss team they have not beaten the past three tries.
ABOUT THE OWLS
- The Owls look to win its fourth consecutive home game in the team’s final series at FAU Arena this season, hosting Southern Miss for two games on Friday and Saturday
- Astou Gaye will be honored on Senior Day, taking place before Saturday’s game
- FAU has commenced C-USA play with a 5-7 record, and will try to get back into the winning column after previously riding a four-game winning streak before Monday’s 92-62 loss at UTEP
- Head coach Jim Jabir is in his fourth season at the helm with his 2020-21 team being made up of one redshirt freshman, six sophomores, six juniors, one senior and one graduate student
- Iggy Allen leads the team with 21.9 points, 11.0 rebounds and 2.6 steals per game, and ties Alexa Zaph with a team’s most 2.5 assists per game. Janeta Rozentale averages 8.6 rebounds per game, while leading the Owls with 1.5 blocks per game
HISTORY AGAINST THE LADY EAGLES
- Southern Miss has a 7-1 advantage over FAU
- The Owls picked up their first win over the Lady Eagles in Coach Jim Jabir‘s first season at the helm in 2018. FAU defeated Southern Miss 89-74 at home
- FAU has lost the last three games, including two last year, both by a four-point margin
- In the last game of the series, FAU fell to Southern Miss in Hattiesburg, 59-55, off a go-ahead jumper by the Golden Eagles with seven seconds remaining in the game. Juliette Gauthier led the Owls with 14 points, while Nikola Ozola followed with a career-high 14 points and four assists
- The first game in the series history was played at home in 2014, resulting in a 78-70 loss
- FAU is 1-4 at home and 0-3 on the road against the Lady Eagles
SCOUTING SOUTHERN MISS
- Southern Miss matches FAU’s win total with a 7-9 record, while being 5-9 in C-USA play
- The Lady Eagles have one of the most memorable C-USA wins of the season, a 69-61 victory at Middle Tennessee
- Southern Miss was projected to finish the conference in 11th after finishing 15-15 (7-11 C-USA) last season. The Lady Eagles were the No. 8 seed in the tournament and lost to Marshall in overtime in the opening round, 71-67
- Freshman Melyia Grayson leads the team with 9.2 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per contest
- Daishai Almond is the team’s leader in assists (52) and steals (25)
LAST TIME OUT
- FAU beat UTEP in the first game of the series, 67-62
- Allen led the first game with 28 points, 17 rebounds and five steals
- Allie Tylka (13 points and six rebounds), Rita Pleskevich (11 points) and Zaph (11 points) each notched double digits in scoring
- The Owls outrebounded the Miners in the first game, 42-35, which was well above the average UTEP held opponents to prior to Sunday’s game (33.3)
- FAU dropped the second game, 92-62, after only trailing by three points at the half. Allen led the team with 15 points, while Zaph and Astou Gaye followed with 13 apiece
AN OWL WIN MEANS
- Snapping a three-game losing streak against Southern Miss
- Extending the Owls’ home streak to four games
- A chance to get to .500 and match the program’s most C-USA wins with two this weekend
UPCOMING
FAU will travel to Charlotte to close out the regular season on March 5 and 6 with both games being streamed on ESPN+.
OWLS ON SOCIAL MEDIA
For complete coverage of FAU women’s basketball, follow us on Twitter (@FAUWBB), Instagram (@FAUWBB) and Facebook (FAU Women’s Basketball).
