Owls Hold Off Green Wave to Remain No. 1 in American

Wednesday, January 21

Boca Raton, Fla.

7 p.m.

Florida Atlantic

14-6,6-1American

Tulane

12-7,3-3American

Tulane

Fla. Atlantic

Photo by: Jack Williams

1/21/2026 10:20:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

By: Ben Paul

BOCA RATON, Fla. – Florida Atlantic's men's basketball team maintained its top spot in the American Conference standings with a 79-74 win over Tulane on Wednesday evening at Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena.

The Owls (14-6, 6-1) staved off a late Green Wave (12-7, 3-3) rally with a strong second half from sophomore guard Isaiah Elohim and a 20-point performance from redshirt sophomore guard Devin Vanterpool. Florida Atlantic now owns the current longest win streak in the American with five straight victories.

FIRST HALF
The Owls exploded off the opening tip, scoring four seconds in when the jump ball landed in the hands of Elohim for a wide-open layup. FAU jumped out to a 10-4 lead, converting its first two three-point attempts.

A 12-1 Green Wave run was countered by nine unanswered points by the Owls, including back-to-back triples to regain the lead, as Florida Atlantic held Tulane without a field goal for almost six minutes to go up 34-26. The Owls made five of their last six field goal attempts, taking a double-digit lead off a three-pointer from freshman guard Yohann Sissoko to hold a 43-32 lead at halftime.

SECOND HALF
The second half began the same way as the first, with Williams finding Elohim for the score inside, this time a slam dunk. Elohim continued to fire away, making his first six shot attempts on his way to 15 points in the period.

Florida Atlantic maintained a double-digit lead with four minutes remaining, but the Green Wave tightened it up in the waning moments. In a three-point game with 14 seconds left, Vanterpool calmly sank two free throws to put the game out of reach and deliver the Owls their fifth straight win.

PRESS CONFERENCE

STATS & NOTES

A pair of Owl big men, junior forward Xander Pintelon and redshirt sophomore forward Devin Williams, dished out collegiate career highs in assists, with the former tallying six and the latter with five. Williams set his personal best in the first half alone with four.
Elohim's 18 points, on eight-for-12 shooting, tie his career high.
Vanterpool now has a team-high six 20+ point games on the season. He also led the team with seven boards.
The Owls finished the game shooting 51.9% from the field, their sixth straight game at the Elly over the 50% mark.
As a team, Florida Atlantic totaled 20 assists for the third time of the season and second in conference play.
FAU moves to 9-1 at the Elly for the 2025-26 season.

UP NEXT
Florida Atlantic will head to Tampa for a meeting with South Florida on Sunday, Jan. 25. Tip-off is at 1 p.m. on ESPN2.

FOLLOW THE OWLS
To stay up to date on all things FAU men's basketball, follow the Owls on social media @FAUMBB.

Florida Atlantic's 2025-26 season is sponsored by Phil Smith Kia/Phil Smith Acura.