Florida Atlantic Tops Louisiana-Lafayette, 63-47

Saturday, January 31

Boca Raton, Fla.

7:00 PM

Florida Atlantic

Louisiana-Lafayette

1/31/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball

Jan. 31, 2009

Final Stats

BOCA RATON, FL - Florida Atlantic won for the first time since December 13th, soundly beating Louisiana-Lafayette 63-47 Saturday in Boca Raton.

Florida Atlantic (5-18; 1-10 Sun Belt) received 18 points from senior guard Paul Graham III and the Owls defense limited the Ragin' Cajun's to 26% shooting from the field.

Louisiana-Lafayette (7-14; 4-6 Sun Belt) fell to 1-9 on the road. ULL's Travis Bureau - who entered the game among the NCAA's leaders in 3-point shooting percentage - made just 1 of his 10 attempts from long range.

As a team the Cajuns were 2-for-38 from the 3-point line.

"It always feels good to win," said FAU head coach Mike Jarvis after the game. "It is important to play hard and the kids continue to do that. Our kids don't lack confidence and didn't play like a team that lacked confidence."

Florida Atlantic established leads of 12-3 and 14-6 after five quick points by both Graham and senior classmate Carderro Nwoji.

Lamar Roberson's put-back dunk got the Cajuns back to within two, 18-16 with 8:32 remaining before the intermission.

FAU held a 25-20 edge after a low-scoring first-half.

A spinning lay-up by Graham in the opening stages of the second half was part of a 6-0 Owls push after the break. Graham finished with a team-high six rebounds, made nine free throws and distributed four assists.

The FAU lead was 10, 37-27, midway through the second half when Brett Royster's alley-oop jam initiated what would be 11 unanswered FAU points. With nine minutes left FAU led comfortably, 46-27.

Royster matched his career-high with 14 points. Freshman guard Shavar Richardson added 12 on 5-of-10 shooting.

FAU went without a field goal in the final 6:23 but held on for the win, snapping a 13-game losing streak.

"I am sure there were a few guys that felt pressure since we hadn't won in a while," added Jarvis. "I wasn't concerned with a losing streak and I am not concerned with a winning streak. Everyday we are going to come to play and work hard."

Next up for the Owls is New Orleans on the road Thursday, February 5th at 8 p.m. ET, followed by a home date with Troy Saturday, February 7th.