FAU heads to Tulane for a road battle with the Green Wave and the home team will be looking to extend their 1 game win streak, while FAU will be looking to snap a 1 game skid.
Similar to UAB last game, Tulane has won 4 of their last 5 ball games and will be matching up with FAU playing some of their best basketball of the season and should they defeat FAU, it would be their highest net rank of the year. The Owls have played well on the road as of late and they will look to keep that rolling here in the Bayou.
Stay tuned below for live updates as the game progresses.
U16 1H-
The Owls came out hot early on, converting 44% of their looks through the first 4 minutes and change, while Tulane was off to a 2 of 8 start and were only 1 of 5 from beyond the arc. Both sides were getting diverse scoring early on, with each having 3 players in the score column, however a strong finish from Ken Evans Jr at the rim off the dribble gave the Owls a 9-7 lead heading into the U16 timeout with 15:16 to play in the first half.
U12 1H timeout-
Things began to slow down and in a major way for both sides, as out of the U16 timeout the Owls went scoreless for over 4 minutes and Tulane had 2 points during the same strech as both sides were playing solid defense and limiting open looks. Matas Vokietaitis gave the Owls an 11-10 lead with 11:47 to play with a strong finish down low, however Kaleb Banks matched him with a strong finish of his own on the ensuing possession and heading into the U12 timeout, the Green Wave held a 12-11 lead with 11:29 to play.
U8 1H timeout-
The Owls went cold once again from the field out of the U12 timeout, failing to score again for over 4 minutes, while the Green Wave went on a 6-0 run. Even though both sides were shooting under 35% from the field and 25% from 3, the Owls offense was anemic and heading into the U8 timeout Tulane held a 16-11 lead.
U4 1H timeout-
Not much changed for FAU out of the U8 timeout as the Owls scoring drought reached near 6 minutes, while Tulane continued to capitalize on FAU’s struggles. The Green Wave sparked another 6-0 run on top of the one they already had and they jumped out to their biggest lead of the day, 22-11 with 6:49 to play before FAU finally stopped the bleeding. Although FAU did indeed score, Tulane kept answering and a Rowan Brumbaugh triple, his 3rd of the half, gave Tulane a 27-18 lead heading into the U4 timeout with 4 minutes to play.
Final 4 1H-
The Owls showed some fight over the final 4 minutes, specifically Ken Evans who scored 4 over the final 4 minutes, however Tulane still was responding and heading into halftime the Green Wave were maintaining a 31-23 lead over FAU.
Halftime Thoughts:
The Owls were scuffling heading into halftime, as they were shooting 31% from the field and 18% from 3, also turning the ball over 8 times which translated into 6 Green Wave points. FAU was holding Tulane to under 40% from the field and under 30% from deep, however without consistent offense and better ball handling, the Owls defense may not matter in this one. FAU has to find consistency in the second half to avoid their second straight loss.
2H first 4-
Early on the Owls came out with great energy, forcing a pair of Green Wave turnovers on their first 2 possessions of the half, while on the other end they were getting to the paint and it led to a trip to the line for Miller and a bucket for Carroll off an offensive rebound. Baba Miller had 3 points in the first 2 minutes and his bucket with 17:44 to play cut the deficit, to 5, 33-28. Each side continued to trade buckets, as Leland Walker scored his 1000 career point on a drive to the rim, while Kaleb Banks scored 4 of Tulane’s 6 points. Although FAU looked to have found their offense, Tulane was still hitting at a 60% clip to start the second half and heading into then U16 they were still holding a 37-31 lead with 15:53 to play.
U12 2H timeout-
Out of the U16 the Owls continued their strong second half offensive showing, getting 6 consecutive points, 4 from Matas and another 2 from Kaleb Glenn and the Owls had the deficit down to 1 possession, 39-37 with 13:45 to play. A few possesions later it was Glenn once again, converting on back to back triples, the latter giving the Owls a 43-41 lead heading into the U12 timeout with 11:54 to play. The Owls were finally able to string some defensive stops together while also finding success from beyond the arc and now with momentum the Owls have to find a way to finish.
U8 2H timeout-
The teams continued to trade back and forth buckets, with FAU controlling momentum and in between the U8 and U12 the Owls got buckets from 4 different players. The owls were able to take a 3 point lead on a triple from Moretti with 9:24 to play, however follwoing that things would begin to turn in a negative way for FAU. Tulane would go on to take a 1 point lead heading into the U8 timeout, as Asher Woods hit a triple and Rowan Brumbaugh added a free throw and heading into the U8 timeout the Green Wave were holding a 52-51 lead over FAU.
U4 2H timeout-
The Owls collapse began out of the U8 timeout as Tulane went on a 14-2 run, forcing multiple FAU turnovers in the process and after the Owls led by 3 with 9:24, they were trailing 66-53 with 3:51 to play heading into the U4 timeout.
Final 4-
Tulane quickly went on an 8-1 run out of the U4 timeout to put this game on ice, as Kaleb Banks and Rowan Brumbaugh each got to the line multiple times and with 2:21 to play Tulane had their largest lead of the day 73-54. The Owls worked to make it respectable over the final few minutes, as Leland Walker scored 5 and Kaleb Glenn scored 4 over the final few minutes but it was to no avail as Tulane closed out an 80-65 victory.