- Jhivvan Jackson goes for 38, his 11th 30+ point game of the year.
- Keaton Wallace held without a basket for first 30 minutes of game action.
- Roadrunners shoot 40 percent from field, FAU makes 14 3-pointers.
- UTSA hosts UAB on Sunday at 2 p.m. at The Convo.
BOCA RATON, Fla. – UTSA men's basketball missed 10 of its first 11 shots and Florida Atlantic used an early 10-0 run to fuel an 80-71 win over the Roadrunners, on Thursday night at FAU Arena.
UTSA (12-16, 6-9 Conference USA) fell behind early as FAU (16-13, 8-8 C-USA) held the Roadrunners to 1 of 11 to open the game from the field and used a 10-0 run to build an early, insurmountable lead that ballooned to 22 with just 12 minutes off the clock in the first half and climbed to 23 with 10:28 left in regulation. UTSA cut the lead to nine with 1:43 left but the Owls were able to hold off the Roadrunners late-game charge.
The Roadrunners were led by the nation's second-leading scorer, junior guard Jhivvan Jackson, a native of Bayamon, Puerto Rico, who had 38 points on 13 of 24 shooting, including an 8 of 16 mark from the 3-point line. It marked his 25th game in 28 outings with 20 or more points and his 11th game of the year with 30 or more.
The other half of UTSA's dynamic duo – the nation's No. 2 scoring pair – Keaton Wallace was held without a basket for the first 30 minutes on the clock. The product of Dallas' Richardson High School made three buckets late and finished with 11 points and four rebounds.
Senior forward Byron Frohnen made a program-record 128th consecutive start to open his career. The program record holder in career rebounds, Frohnen had seven rebounds and four assists. Luke Barisic had 12 points, including two triples.
The Roadrunners were stifled offensively from the start and was held to 40 percent shooting from the field and 34.4 from behind the arc. FAU bombed in seven of its first 12 3-point attempts and finished the game shooting 46.4 percent from the field and 14 of 30 from distance.
FAU got a team-leading 21 points from Michael Forrest, who drilled six 3-pointers. FAU also saw Richardson Maitre (14) and Jailyn Ingram (13) reach double figures. Ingram added 11 rebounds.
UTSA will return to action on Sunday, playing host to UAB at 2 p.m. at the Convocation Center. The game will be broadcast live on CUSA TV, with the Voice of the Roadrunners, Andy Everett, calling the action alongside Tim Carter. The game will also be broadcast live on the Roadrunners Sports Network, available on Ticket 760 AM and goUTSA.com.
FAU opened the scoring on a possession where it grabbed three offensive rebounds and after holding UTSA to six straight misses amongst its first seven attempts, took a 13-2 lead – on a 10-0 run – to force a timeout from UTSA Head Coach Steve Henson with 15:15 left in the first.
FAU stretched its lead to 21-6 at the second media timeout, holding UTSA to 2 of 13 from the field and 0 of 6 from 3-point range at the stoppage.
A 6-0 UTSA run cut the lead to 36-20 at the final media stoppage of the first half, with UTSA getting two points at the free throw line from Wallace and Jacob Germany, and a basket at the rim from Czumbel.
At the half, FAU owned a 45-23 lead over the Roadrunners, who were held to just seven made baskets, good for 26.9 percent from the field. FAU shot 48.5 percent overall and was 9 of 18 from distance. UTSA had nine turnovers and just two assists in the frame, while FAU had 12 dimes and a 25-13 margin in rebounding.
The Owls got the lead back up to 22 in the opening minutes of the second half and took a 60-37 lead with just over 10 minutes left and the Roadrunners were able to cut the lead to 12 on the strength of a Wallace three with just over six minutes left but FAU answered to build the lead back to an unreachable mark.
- UTSA -