What: FAU vs UAB
When: Sunday, January 12th, 5:00 PM
Where: Eleanor R Baldwin Arena, Boca Raton FL
Series: UAB leads 14-6
TV: ESPN Flagship
Radio: Fox 640
Live Stats: Stats broadcast
Line: FAU -3
Owls at a Glance
Offense – 82.0 PPG, 47.8% FG, 35.1% 3PT
Defense – 73.4 PPGA, 43.5% FGA, 33.7% 3PTA
Rebounding – 38.1 RPG Owls, 34.1 RPG Opponents
FAU Notes
FAU is back at home this weekend, as following a 2 game road trip to North Carolina the Owls will matchup with UAB this Sunday at 5 pm with a national telecast on ESPN. It was a fruitful road trip for the Owls, winning 2 in a row to bounce back from the back to back losses they suffered in the previous 2 games and now heading back home the Owls are rolling with momentum.
The Owls led for the majority of both games, fighting off a late ECU come-back and overcoming a shooting slump against Charlotte with great defense that slowed the 49ers down. This squad is battle tested due to having spent a majority of the non-conference slate on the road and early on in conference play the Owls have been able to rely on their past experiences to pull out two critical wins on the road.
FAU Forward Tre Carroll sizes up a Blazer defender in the Owls’ meeting last season at Baldwin Arena.
This team was able to adjust on the fly in a variety of ways during this past 2 game stretch as against ECU the Owls made a starting lineup adjustment for the first time this season, inserting Tre Carroll who sparked a 15-2 run out of the gates after the Owls suffered from slow starts against MSU and Memphis, also shooting 50% from 3 after shooting under 20% against Memphis. The one thing that plagued FAU against ECU was rebounding as ECU snagged 25 offensive rebounds which almost helped them comeback, however against Charlotte the Owls won the rebound battle which combined with consistent perimeter defense helped them overcome a spotty shooting night.
Another positive sign during this 2 game stretch was FAU being able to get different leading scorers during each game as against ECU, the Owls were led by Tre Carroll and Ken Evans who each scored 17 a piece, while against ECU Baba Miller led the way with 20 points. The secondary scorers varied as well Leland Walker chipped in 14 against ECU while Nico Moretti also had 14 against Charlotte and while the Owls would like to get more consistent performances, this team is at its best when everyone is contributing and this 2 game stretch served as a confidence boost for a majority of the team.
If you look at the metrics, the offense continues to produce efficient results as the Owls have an EFG% of 53.6% which is 81st in the nation, while only turning it over on 16.2% of possessions which is 89th, also assisting on 56.5% of their field goals which is 84th and they have converted 34.5% of their 3-point attempts which is 119th and 54.9% inside the perimeter which is 83rd. The weak spots offensively for the Owls has been their offensive rebounding and free throw shooting as the Owls grab an offensive rebound on only 27% of possessions which is 267th and convert only 70.4% of free throws which is 224th.
Defensively, the Owls continue to be a pesky team in the passing lanes a trait which helped them immensely against Charlotte and overall on the season they are forcing a turnover on 19.3% of possessions which is 85th in the country and that, combined with their interior defense are the shining traits of this defense, as teams are shooting 47.3% on 2-point field goals against FAU which is 68th in the country. The weak spots of the defense statistically remain the perimeter defense and rebounding as the Owls allow teams to shoot 39.3% from 3 which is 360th and allow an offensive rebound on 32.1% of possessions which is 276th, however against both ECU and Charlotte the Owls allowed less than 35% shooting from 3 and against Charlotte the 49ers grabbed only 9 offensive rebounds.
Against UAB, the Owls will need to continue the offensive diversity that led them to success against both ECU and Charlotte, as against ECU the Owls had both the perimeter and interior success to overcome the offensive rebound barrage, something UAB could also bring to the table, while against Charlotte they used a more paint centric approach to make up for a lack of consistent perimeter shooting. Tre Carroll has given this offense the spark it needs early in games, however the perimeter shooting remains inconsistent at times and while the Owls will look to continue to build consistency from beyond the arc, a solid dose of drives to the rim which could also result in trips to the free throw line is critical to the offenses ability to not become stagnant.
Defensively, the Owls were able to show solid resilience on the glass against Charlotte following problems on the glass against ECU, however the 49ers aren’t the greatest offensive-rebounding team, while UAB on Sunday is one of the best rebounding teams in the conference. For the Owls to be successful in this one they will have to continue to be solid on the glass, while limiting perimeter opportunities for UAB, which the Blazers will look to use to complement the interior attack from Yaxel Lendeborg.
UAB always presents a tall task, even facing them at home and the Owls will need to continue to build on the success they achieved in their past 2 matchups to pull off a victory in this one. FAU was able to improve in a lot of the areas they have struggled this season during their 2 game win streak and if they continue that in this one against UAB and get their offense flourishing as it has at times this season the Blazers may have a hard time keeping up.
UAB at A Glance
Offense – 84.8 PPG, 46.9% FG, 32.8% 3PT
Defense – 74.6 PPGA, 42.7% FGA, 33.5% 3PTA
Rebounding – 41.1 RPG Owls, 33.7 RPG Opponents
Blazer Notes
UAB heads into this matchup sitting at 9-7 on the year and they are riding a 2 game win streak, having found a bit of success since the calendar flipped to 2025. The Pre-season AAC favorites struggled out of the gates, losing 6 non-conference games in which they were favored, however they have won their previous 2 AAC games by an average of 21 points and have looked to turn a corner.
In the past 2 matchups UAB scored over 80 points in both while holding both Tulane and Tulsa to under 70 points, something they were only able to achieve against Prairie View A&M and Alabama A&M this season.The Blazers have been plagued by inconsistencies on both ends of the court so far this season, however with veteran leaders in Yaxel Lendeborg and Coach Andy Kennedy this is a team that could very well be a sleeping giant.
The Blazers are led by the senior Lendeborg, who opted to return to UAB this season amidst draft and transfer portal considerations and it has paid off as he is averaging a career high 16.4 points per game along with 10.1 rebounds and 3.8 assists. Outside of Lendeborg, they still have 4 other players averaging double figures, as Christian Coleman averages 11.9 points per game, Ale Vasquez is behind him with 11.1 and Ja’borri Mcgee averages 10.8 and overall the team has 9 players scoring 6 or more per game.
The struggles this season for UAB have come from their inconsistent offensive out-puts at times, as in all but 2 of their losses they have shot less than 25% from 3, however in all but 2 of their wins they have shot 30% or better from 3. Their inconsistent offense has been compounded at times with the same struggles on defense as teams have shot 34.6% from beyond the arc against them which is 243rd in nation and they have struggled to force turnovers, averaging one only 16.6% of the time which is 233rd in the nation.
Despite the struggles at times, there has been a lot of good for this UAB squad especially on offense as they grab an offensive rebound on 38.1% of possessions which is 12th in the nation, only turn it over on 15.1% of possessions which is 36th in the nation and are top 100 in free throw percentage, and east block % and steal %. On the defensive side of the ball, this team hasn’t necessarily been great in any categories, however outside of 3 point % allowed they have been fairly good across the board, including holding teams to under 50% shooting on 2-point field goals.
Over their past 2 games the inconsistencies that have plagued them on both ends of the court have subsided, as against Tulsa they shot 57% from the field and 31% from 3 while holding Tulsa to 21% from 3 and against Tulane they shot 54% from the field and 36% from 3 while holding the Green Wave to 31% from 3. Another big factor was diverse scoring as Ale Vasquez came off the bench with 26 against Tulsa and Lendeborg has 25 against Tulane and if this squad can get scoring from different players consistently they could very well turn their season around in AAC play.
UAB seems to be firing on all cylinders after some early season struggles and they will look to continue their hot streak heading into Eleanor R Baldwin arena, however they will square up against an FAU team also playing some of their best basketball of the season. If the Blazers are going to be able to pull off the road upset they will have to continue getting the scoring in a variety of ways that they have been over the past 2 games while also preventing FAU from getting hot from beyond the arc, if they are able to do that they will be in a good position, however it will still be an up-hill battle.