Senior Guard Jalen Gaffney excited as Florida Atlantic advances to semi’s with win over UNT. photo by Calvin Hickerson
The No. 2 seed Florida Atlantic’s men’s basketball team are moving onto the semifinals of the 2024 American Athletic Conference Championship Tournament after taking down No. 7 North Texas, 77-71, on Friday evening.
Buckets did not come easy in a battle between the conference’s top scoring offense and top scoring defense, but the Owls brought a physical presence that ultimately could not be matched. Junior center Vlad Goldin led the way yet again with a 21-point, 10 rebound outing with junior guards Johnell Davis and Alijah Martin as well as redshirt sophomore guard Nick Boyd adding double-digit scoring performances of their own.
photo by Art Boone
“I’m super proud of the guys in the locker room,” said North Texas head coach Ross Hodge. “Everything this team went through this year and to stay together like they did is super special. We of course have a ton of respect for (FAU) coach May and their team. I think their experience and togetherness showed late.”
photo by Calvin Hickerson
UNT was led in scoring Friday by Jason Edwards who poured in a game-high 26 points. It was his 13th 20-point game of the year. CJ Noland followed up his 23-point performance last night with another solid showing as he scored 13 points and was 2-of-2 from deep.
The Owls came out swinging on both ends of the floor, holding North Texas without a point for five minutes and went on a 9-0 run in the process. Nine of the team’s first 10 field goals came from the paint, as the team’s top three scorers, Goldin Davis, and Martin, aggressively attacked the hoop for powerful scores inside. Florida Atlantic entered the locker room with a slight 35-30 advantage, but adversity would soon strike.
photo by Art Boone
A back-and-forth opening to the half saw seven lead changes in the first four minutes. The Mean Green took the lead, one not relinquished for over 10 minutes. But FAU stayed right with them, not letting the deficit reach more than four points. A contested Goldin found a cutting Martin on a layup to tie the game at 58 with five-and-a-half minutes to go, sparking a 7-0 run.
The Owl offense came to life with 15 points in the final three minutes. With two minutes and 42 seconds remaining, Goldin muscled his way to the hoop on a three-point play to turn a tied game into a three-point lead. Florida Atlantic was on top for the rest of the way, making five of their last seven shots to seal the win.
The Mean Green (18-14) led for nearly 13 minutes in the second half and had its largest lead of the game at the under 8 media timeout of the second half. But the reigning Final Four participant Owls (25-7) who returned nearly its entire roster from last season made the plays late to pull out the victory. A back-and-forth opening to the half saw seven lead changes in the first four minutes.
But FAU stayed right with them, not letting the deficit reach more than four points. A contested Goldin found a cutting Martin on a layup to tie the game at 58 with five-and-a-half minutes to go, sparking a 7-0 run. The Owl offense came to life with 15 points in the final three minutes. With two minutes and 42 seconds remaining, Goldin muscled his way to the hoop on a three-point play to turn a tied game into a three-point lead. Florida Atlantic was on top for the rest of the way, making five of their last seven shots to seal the win.