Conference play begins for FAU as the Owls (7-6) are set to face No. 21 Memphis (10-3) on Thursday, Jan. 2 at Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena. Tip-off is at 7:00 PM with the game airing on ESPN2.
Quick Notes
- This will mark FAU’s second-straight ranked opponent. In their last game on Dec. 21, the Owls lost to No. 21 Michigan State (now ranked No. 18) 86-69.
- Memphis’ PJ Haggerty is one of the best players in the country as he is averaging 22.1 PPG this season, which is eighth in the country. Haggerty is one of the best in terms of drawing fouls to get to the stripe. He is averaging 7.8 FTM and 9.5 FTA, which ranks first in the nation. The junior out of Crosby, Texas is very aggressive when he has control of the ball as he is third in the country with 4.0 turnovers per game.
- Memphis big man Moussa Cisse was just named AAC Player of the Week. The 6’11 center from Conakry, Guinea recorded his first double-double of the season in their last game against No. 16 Ole Miss, recording 13 points and 11 rebounds to go along with three blocks. Guarding Cisse down low will be Matas Vokietaitis, a freshman out of Lithuania.
- Last week, FAU forward Tre Carroll won AAC Player of the Week. In his last four games coming off the bench, Carroll has scored 17 or more points. He is averaging 11.5 PPG and 4.2 RPG.
- Memphis is shooting 40.2% from three (11th in the country) this season, and they are averaging 19.3 free throws made per game (9th in the country).
- Memphis has three wins (No. 2 UConn, No. 16 Clemson, and No. 16 Ole Miss) and two losses (No. 2 Auburn and No. 17 Mississippi State) against ranked opponents this season.
- Memphis has eight wins in games against Quad 1 and Quad 2 opponents. The Tigers are the only team with more than six such wins.
Everything head coach John Jakus said ahead of FAU’s matchup with No. 21 Memphis
Jakus is excited for conference play to begin. He calls it a fresh start and the second portion of the season.
“We like to say this is the second season with our conference tournament being third and then the postseason being fourth. It’s a new energy. I think it feels fresh for us. We’re thankful for a home game after nine of our first 13 were on the road.”
FAU is already battle-tested entering conference play, which is very important because the Owls are still trying to gel with all of their new pieces.
“I think that because of the way our schedule was and the amount of time we’ve spent away from home and because of the amount of close games we were in… the battle-tested thing is real for us. We have been in some close situations that have allowed our guys to mature. Getting 10 new guys and a new staff on the same page as you go through nine of your first 13 games on the road is unique. Now we’ve got this fair shot where everybody is playing a certain amount at home and a certain amount away where we can be ourselves and we can grow from the mistakes we made and learn from the successes that we’ve had. I think in general a lot of that is going to pay some fruit and I’m looking forward to our guys experiencing that fruit.”
It’s an important game for the FAU program as Memphis is just the second ranked team ever to visit Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena. The last time a ranked team played FAU at home was in 1997 (Charleston).
“Penny (Hardaway) has done a great job with his scheduling. They put themselves in situations both at home and on the road against high major opponents and then to go to Maui (Hawaii)… you’re getting three good games for sure. Because of the scheduling and the backcourt and how good they’ve been… they are clearly a top 25 team in the country. I’m glad they are coming in here. It’s good for the fans. Elly (Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena) the last couple of years has had a real run of sellouts and a high care factor. We hope that our guys get the same. I know the students aren’t getting back until next week but we are hoping and praying for a stripe-out.”
FAU has a gameplan for Memphis’ three guards.
“I think the three guards for them have been pretty special. You can get 20 points from any of the three of them on any given night. To be frank, you can probably get two of three on certain nights. They all have different strengths… they are good at different things. You can’t let (Tyrese) Hunter make that pull-up three out of his left hand. You got to keep (PJ) Haggerty off the free throw line. You got to understand that if (Colby) Rogers hits his first or second three, he’s probably teed up for a day. They’re a group but they are also individuals. So for us it just comes down to breaking down each individual’s strength and then us knowing what it is they do well and doing our best to take that away from them.”
FAU has a gameplan for Memphis as a whole.
“As far as them (Memphis) as a whole, they’re a little bit like us. When they’re in transition, they are freer and they’re allowed to be more themselves. When they’re offensive rebounding, they go from really really good to great. You can’t give a team as good as them second-chance points. We are going to have to keep them off the free throw line, take the three away, and then we are going to have to make it difficult for (Dain) Dainja to catch those easy two’s and the post touches.”
Jakus spoke about what FAU has attacked the most at practice ahead of the Memphis game.
“The first two days back were conditioning. Some teams were playing games but because of the way our schedule fell, we had this gap between Michigan State and league play so we spent a few days playing a bunch, running, and getting back in shape… and then focusing a lot on our defense and rebounding. Today we’ve made a shift and really focused on what’s next. Conference play is going to take over and there’s not going to be as many days to work on ourselves since we are constantly going to be focusing on the next group.”