FAU Men's Basketball Opens Tonight at Rhode Island

Nov. 7, 2007

BOCA RATON, FL - The Florida Atlantic University men's basketball team begins both its second season of Sun Belt Conference play and the second year of the Rex Walters era as head coach, as they travel to New England to open the season against the University of Rhode Island and Boston College this weekend.

The upcoming season holds tremendous promise for the FAU men's basketball program. The Owls accumulated the third-most wins in Sun Belt Conference history for a first-year school (10) in 2006-07, advancing to the quarterfinals of the SBC Tournament before bowing out to Western Kentucky in an 86-81 final at the Cajundome in Lafayette, Louisiana.

"We took steps in the right direction," said Coach Walters. "We had some issues throughout the year but we played some real good basketball in February and March."

Gone from last year's squad are starting guards DeAndre Rice and Brent Crews, who combined for 26 points and over 6 assists per game last season. Rice earned second-team all-conference honors, following a stellar senior campaign. He led the team in scoring (20.5 PPG), and set a single-season FAU record for three-point percentage. The 6'3" shooting guard was selected 46th overall by the Tulsa 66ers in last week's NBDL Draft.

"In my mind we lost the best offensive player in the league from a season ago (in Rice), and that's saying something with the talent in the Sun Belt," said Walters. "There are so many great players in this league, but he was special."

Crews was the team leader in assists (4.5/game) and steals (1.4/game) last season, serving as a spark plug to ignite the Owls on both ends of the floor.

Stepping into that backcourt void will be newcomers Carderro Nwoji and Xavier Perkins. Nwoji, a junior college transfer from Relands Community College in Kansas, will be called upon to run the point. Perkins elected to redshirt his freshman year after an early-season injury in 2006-07, and will open as the team's starting shooting guard.

Carlos Monroe, second-team All-Sun Belt as a sophomore a year ago, looks poised for a breakout season. The junior power forward was recently voted to the pre-season All-Sun Belt first team, after leading the conference in field goal percentage (59.7%) and nearly averaging a double-double (18.4 PPG, 9.4 RPG).

"I thought he had a good year, finishing in the top five in the league in three statistical categories," said Walters of Monroe's accomplishments. "Each year he's improved, and we hope to see more improvement this year. He's worked very hard in the two years he's been here."

The Owls also return veteran players Paul Graham and Jeff Parmer to the starting five, both double-digit scorers from a year ago.

Graham poses the most-experienced backcourt threat for opposing teams at the swingman position, as the top returning three-point shooter for the Owls. He also has a knack for getting to the stripe, leading all FAU backcourt players with 119 free throw attempts in 2006-07.

Parmer is a solid rebounder on the block, complimenting the presence of Monroe in the post with a 6'8" frame of his own. The senior led his squad with 24 blocks last season, and figures to increase that number significantly in 2007-08.

As the season opens, FAU will be strongly tested with back-to-back games on the road against high-quality opponents from established conferences: Rhode Island (Atlantic 10) & Boston College (ACC).

Rhode Island posted a solid 10-6 record (19-14 overall) in the A-10 last season, tying for fourth in the conference. The Rams return senior Will Daniels at forward, their leading scorer from a year ago (17.4 PPG, 5.6 RPG).

Boston College also went 10-6 in conference play (20-11 overall), finishing in a three-way tie for third in the ACC. The Eagles earned a #7 seed in the East Region of the 2007 NCAA Tournament, downing #10 seed Texas Tech in the first round, 84-75. B.C. fell to #2 seed Georgetown, 62-55, in the second round as part of the Hoyas' march to the Final Four.

Calendar

Upcoming Events

Players Mentioned

Brent Crews

Carlos Monroe

Carderro Nwoji

Jeff Parmer

Xavier Perkins

DeAndre Rice

Upcoming Events

Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball versus Saint Leo on December 10, 2025 at 7 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball versus Albany on December 13, 2025 at 12 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball at Saint Mary's on December 19, 2025 at 10 p.m. ET

Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball versus UCF on December 23, 2025 at 2 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball versus UTSA on December 31, 2025 at 1 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball at Tulane on January 4, 2026 at 1 p.m. ET

Florida Atlantic University Athletics