Men’s Basketball blows past Lynn University 78-59 in exhibition Florida Atlantic kicked off it’s 2009-10 season tonight in Boca Raton with a win over cross town foe Lynn University by a final score of 78-59 before a spirited announced crowd of 1192. Junior center Brett Royster, whom Jarvis recently referred to as the Owl’s “most improved player”, led FAU with 20 points in the win. “I listened to Coach Jarvis. He showed me some things before I went home that I worked on in the gym. A lot of stuff with my shot, and being aggressive offensively”, said a gleeful Royster. For the freshmen it was Greg Gantt with 18 points, 12 of which came from long range, and five rebounds. “Our guards did a good job of drawing the defense’s attention and the big guys did a good job setting screens. I was wide open and able to hit the shots”, said Gantt. FAU Head Coach Mike Jarvis was not surprised by his performance. “That’s why I recruited him. That’s his specialty”, said Jarvis. Freshman point guard Ray Taylor also had a productive night against the Knight defense, working his way towards the basket for 14 points and six assists. Taylor brought the crowd to it’s feet when he lofted a skillful pass to the basket which Royster flushed home for an easy slam. FAU sprinted out to a 9-0 lead early in the first half, only to find the Knights gain control, as shooting went cold, just past the midway point of the period 17-16. The Owls enjoyed a 38-27 lead at the break despite shooting just 34.3% for the period. However, they made necessary adjustments in the second half to improve to 56% while connecting on 14 of 25 attempts; thus putting the game away in blow-out fashion. Coach Jarvis was pleased with the outcome, but is still expecting improvements from his young squad. “Happy with the energy, and enthusiasm, it feels like a team. It was good for us, and will show us how much better we can play. They are gonna’ get better”, said Jarvis. Defensively, FAU held the Knights to just 23.1%, on 6 of 26, shooting from behind the three point line. Jarvis added that there is no starting rotation established at this point in time, and that he will likely use some different line-up combination’s on Friday night when the Owls play host to Florida Tech at 7:00PM at FAU Arena.
