BOCA RATON, Fla.- FAU (6-1) extends their winning streak to four with a 83-58 victory over Liberty (6-1) in the first game of The Field of 68 Tip-Off.
After the upset loss to Bryant, FAU has been surging over the last week. Thursday marked their first game back after taking home the ESPN Events Invitational championship.
The Owls started off strong. They were able to get strong play from their big men Vlad Goldin and Giancarlo Rosado in the first half as they accounted for 10 of FAU’s 23 rebounds. FAU was also able to come out firing from the three point line, shooting 4-8 in the first half. Alijah Martin was dominant in the first half, scoring 14 points on 6-9 shooting to go along with five rebounds. Goldin also was in double digits by halftime with 10 points on 5-7 shooting to go along with two blocks. The largest lead of the first half came when Martin made his one free throw after a foul on a layup to make the score 40-21 with 2:11 left. By halftime, the Owls had a size-able lead, 44-27.
FAU came out just as aggressive in the second half. Defense was turned into offense on a steal by Brandon Weatherspoon in which he made the fast break layup to give the Owls a 53-34 lead with 15:54 remaining. Liberty struggled to keep the game close as FAU continued to use their size and dominate in the paint. In the second half alone, FAU managed to make a living inside the paint outscoring Liberty 28-8. Jalen Gaffney and Bryan Greenlee have continued to improve and make great contributions for the Owls. Greenlee finished the game with 12 points and Gaffney with eight. The Owls bench outscored Liberty’s 18-8, showcasing the amount of depth they possess.
“Extremely proud of the way we’ve handled the recent success up in Orlando, in Disney. I thought our guys had a great mindset in preparation for Liberty and that’s not difficult to do because of the respect we have for their program,” said head coach Dusty May.
From the 7:50 mark in the first half, Liberty was never able to get the score within single digits. FAU got the lead up to 20 with a monster dunk Goldin to make it a 70-50 game with 4:59 to go. The defense continued to be excellent for the Owls forcing 7 Liberty turnovers. They were able to convert that into 10 points off of those turnovers. Greenlee, Goldin, and Martin all finished the game in double digits.
“Just all around game. I really focus on shooting but of course you know you gotta work on your shot as well. You know working on handle, getting to the rim and being able to make tough shots,” said Alijah Martin after the game describing his preparation in the off-season.
What’s next? FAU will look to extend their win streak to five when they take on Charleston at home. That game is on Dec. 2 at 6 p.m. and will air live on ESPNU.