There aren’t many better things in college sports than a win on senior day and FAU Men’s basketball got that on Sunday afternoon, also locking up the 5th seed in the AAC tournament in the process. It was an even game through the first 8 minutes of the first, however by the U12 timeout the Owls led by double figures and they never relinquished that lead, going on to defeat ECU 81-53.
The Owls found a way to flip the script early on in this one, as through the first 6 minutes they were shooting just 18%, however by the end of this one they finished 44% from the field, 37% from 3 and after they struggled from the line against UAB, they finished 15 of 16 at the stripe in this one. It was efficient basketball on both ends of the court, as alongside the solid shooting day, they assisted on 19 of their 28 made shots, won the overall rebound battle 47-33, while grabbing 15 offensive rebounds and defensively they held ECU to 29% from the field and 13% from 3.
The continued theme of this FAU squad has been resiliency and today’s game they needed that trait early on and got it, giving them not only a win for their seniors, but also a major momentum boost heading into the AAC tournament. Although things started slowly, what matters is how they finish and in this one according to FAU Coach John Jakus, they overcame emotions to deliver a truly dominating performance.
“I think that’s senior nights. I saw Scott Drew play his senior night, and they started really slow against Ok State. Eventually it just kind of turns emotional. It’s kind of weird coming out of the locker room. You can see an oddness to us, almost like I thought we made the right reads. Matas had three layups to start. It’s not like we were getting bad shots. It was just a weird, emotional thing. But once we settled in, we started making shots. The defense really carried today. They killed us on the glass last time, and we held them to 13 offensive rebounds instead of 25 and then I’ll just, I just say the two threes, when they shoot over 36% from three, they’re nine and one, and when they shoot under 30, I don’t think they have a win. And we struggled guarding the three, so our toughness in those two areas, I thought, really carried. But the offense was slow to come along, but eventually it got there,” Jakus said.
The Owls were led in this one by Kyky Tandy, who on senior night bounced back from a Shin injury to drop 19 points with 5 made 3’s, while he was joined in double figures by Tre Carroll who finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds, Baba Miller who added 14 points and 12 rebounds and Matas Vokietaitis who rounded out the double figure scorers with 10 points and 5 boards. It was a team effort in this one, as on senior day the family approach shined for the Owls with the Owls using solid ball movement to get scoring across the board.
The family approach didn’t just apply to the leading scorers, as the Owls’ big lead allowed for them to get senior Jack Johnson into the game and record a rebound which according to Jakus was his first official stat while at FAU. This win culminated everything Jakus wanted in his team, as a family first approach led to a dominating victory that sends them into the postseason on a high note.
FAU set a tone early on in this one that they weren’t going to fall flat with a very important opportunity on the line and it is a trait that the Owls will need to possess as they head to Ft Worth looking to make a run at an AAC title. According to senior G Kyky Tandy, the Owls knew that ECU came into this game on a win streak, but they really wanted this win for multiple reasons and that is why they had to come out and strike first.
“We just wanted to win, not only on senior day, we just wanted to win in general, we knew how much it was going to take, because they were on a win streak, so we had to come out and punch them in the mouth first, and that’s what we did,” Tandy said.
ECU may have had a down day shooting the ball, however a lot of that was from the Owls being in the right positions defensively, specifically against CJ Walker, as they limited his paint opportunities down low and it frustrated the Pirates offense as a whole. FAU isn’t going to get an off night from their opponents every time out, however if they continually do the little things such as moving the ball and rebounding aggressively they will compete with anyone in the AAC, but it will also come down to the Owls getting shooting performances like they did tonight.
The win for FAU locked up a 5th seed in the AAC tournament and although it isn’t the double bye that they would have received with a top 4 seed, it gives them a chance to make a run in Fort Worth. According to Jakus, the Owls will rely on their habits in Fort Worth and will need to get execution from there to make a run.
“In this tournament, the habits on defense will matter. Scouting on quick turnarounds will matter. I thought our guys have struggled at times, just to remember that the best player on the other team drives right, and today we made no mistakes on the best players. I mean, if you look at CJ Walker, I think he has had a wonderful year. He’s two of 10. We held him from his tendencies. And then you look at RJ Felton, he’s three of 15. RJ is averaging five threes a game, and as good as any guard in the league, in their six or seven wins. So if we can guard others best players and make some shots in a big, empty gym, and then really bring our own energy, which I thought we were able to do today, that’ll give us a chance, but at the end of the day, we’re gonna have to win a couple close games. We know it, and so that’ll come down to execution and free throws in the last five minutes. And how thrilled Am I to see 15 to 16 from the line before we get on the road,” Jakus said.
It is tough to look back on a successful season before it is over, but in his first year Jakus has led the Owls to a better than .500 record and a top 5 finish in the AAC and they will look to continue that success in Fort Worth. The success is important for Jakus, but he says the job isn’t finished as they need to make a run in Ft Worth and retain talent once the season is over to continue building something in paradise.
“You’re trying to keep perspective about this being a new staff, a new year, new situation, 11 new guys. So you’re trying to be fair, but then you’re also understanding, in this new day and age, in the portal that you got to have some winning, or it can flip fast. You’re not getting as much time because of the constant change. So we need two things to happen. We need to have a good week in Ft Worth, and then the two weeks or three weeks after that, we want to keep playing. And then when we’re done with that, we need retention. And the most important thing is that we get more than five of these guys to come back, and I think UAB only had three of their good players come back, and they took second place. Retention is going to be this deal. And my heart in this whole thing is to make FAU a family, and it becomes a family when our kids stay and we’re not that important, the kids are the most important. And my hope is that they’re here next year,” Jakus said.