BOCA RATON, Fla. – Florida Atlantic University men's basketball had five players with eight or more points in defeating Lynn, 69-54, on Monday night at Abessinio Court at FAU Arena, in the squad's only exhibition of the preseason.
Â
Head Coach
Dusty May:
"It was great to be back in front of our home fans tonight. I was happy with the way we rebounded the ball and played with toughness down the stretch."
Â
FAU started out the game by scoring 12 of the first 16 points, leading by that eight-point advantage at the first media timeout. From that point to the halftime break, it never became a one-possession game, and the Owls took a six-point edge into the locker room at 32-26.
Â
Lynn hit a 3-pointer for the first points of the second half, cutting it to three, but a quick 8-0 Owl run in the span of 1:37 turned the momentum back to the home team.
Everett Winchester hit a bucket in the paint; after a steal,
Alijah Martin knocked down a three; and following a missed Lynn jumper, Martin hit another '3' off an assist from
Vladislav Goldin to make it 40-29.
Â
It remained a single-digit ballgame for just a couple of possessions in the following four minutes, and the FAU lead ballooned to as many as 16 on three occasions.
Alejandro Ralat's nice drive and lay-in with under 30 seconds left capped the scoring, as nine of the 10 Owls that saw action made it into the scoring column.
Â
- Michael Forrest led the way with 13 points, with Giancarlo Rosado right behind him, scoring 11 of his 12 points in the second half. The second-year freshman was 4-of-5 from the field and scored his dozen in 15:19 of action
- Martin was one rebound shy of a double-double with 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting (2-of-3 on 3-pointers) along with nine rebounds. He recorded two blocked shots as well
- Madiaw Niang added nine points and Winchester eight
- The Owls outrebounded the Fighting Knights, 49-27, and outshot their opponents, 47.2% to 32.2%
- Points in the paint was very much in FAU's favor as well, 38-16
The Owls' 2021-22 regular season tips off next Wednesday, Nov. 10, at New Mexico. The team's home opener is three days later, Saturday, Nov. 13, hosting Warner at 4 p.m.
Â