SAN ANTONIO – Jordan Ivy-Curry had a team-leading 19 points but an early second-half run pushed Florida Atlantic to a 73-64 win over UTSA men's basketball, on Saturday afternoon at the Convocation Center.
UTSA (8-14, 1-8 Conference USA) saw its three-point halftime lead evaporate as FAU (12-9, 5-3 C-USA) used a 10-0 run early in the final stanza, featuring UTSA missing 11 of its first 13 shots, to regain a lead with 12 minutes left. The lead grew to a game-high nine with six minutes left before the Roadrunners rallied to cut the lead to one with three minutes left, making five straight shots.
The Owls regained a two-possession lead with two minutes left after a missed shot from the Roadrunners and were able to push it to six points with 36.3 seconds left and hold off the comeback bid to secure the win.
A native of La Marque, Texas, Ivy-Curry had 19 points to lead the Roadrunners on 7 of 24 shooting, sinking three 3-pointers, while adding three assists and three rebounds.
Jacob Germany, a 6-foot-11 native of Kingston, Okla., had 11 points and 10 rebounds for his career-high six double-double of the year and the 12th of his career.
Dhieu Deing, a product of High Point, N.C., had eight points, seven rebounds and two assists. Darius McNeill chipped in seven points and four rebounds. Phoenix Ford grabbed a career-high seven rebounds.
The game was rugged from the start, featuring 38 fouls called on the two teams, including 22 on the Roadrunners.
The Roadrunners finished the game shooting 33.8 percent from the field, while FAU shot 38.2 percent from the field and was 9 of 24 from deep. UTSA won the battle of the boards 47-41 and 19-8 on the offensive glass.
The Owls were led by 16 points each from Alijah Martin and Bryan Greenlee.
The Roadrunners will return to action on Thursday with the first game of a seven-day road trip, traveling to face Rice at 7 p.m. in Houston.
Everett Winchester started the scoring with a lay-in at the rim and Ivy-Curry answered with a 3-pointer from the wing. Vladisav Goldin got on the board with a paint basket which was answered by a Germany offensive rebound and putback for a 5-4 lead. Winchester again got to the rim and Martin sank a 3-pointer for a 9-5 FAU lead. Erik Czumbel answered with his fourth 3-pointer of the year to cut the lead to one but Michael Forrest was fouled on a corner 3-pointer and sank all three at the line for a 12-8 lead at the first media timeout.
Out of the timeout, Germany executed a lefty hook shot in the paint to cut the lead to 12-10. Lachlan Bofinger hit two at the line after a flagrant foul to even the game at 12 and Ivy-Curry drilled a foul-line jumper for UTSA's first lead of the game, 14-12.
Greenlee sparked a 5-0 FAU run that also saw Johnell Davis hit a 3-pointer. Isaiah Addo-Ankrah evened the game at 17 after a wing 3-pointer following a Phoenix Ford offensive rebound. Davis gave FAU the lead before Ford got on the board for a 19-19 game but Forrest sank a 3-pointer for a 22-19 lead at the 10:14 mark.
Germany answered a FAU free throw with a hook shot in the paint to cut the lead to 23-21 and Bofinger finished a nice find from Ivy-Curry to cut the lead to 24-23 at the under-eight minute media timeout.
Deing gave UTSA i's first lead since 6:57 with a corner 3-pointer and after an FAU basket, Ford gave UTSA a 28-26 lead. Riding three UTSA turnovers, Greenlee scored seven straight to give FAU a 33-28 lead with 2:22left in the first.
Bofinger tipped in a missed 3-pointer to snap the 7-0 run and narrow the lead to 33-30. Ivy-Curry cut the lead to one and after Ginacarlo Rosato hit two at the line to regain a three-point lead, Addo-Ankrah drilled a 3-pointer to even the game at 34. UTSA got a defensive stop and Ivy-Curry drilled a 30-foot leaner with the clock expiring to give UTSA a 38-35 lead at halftime. UTSA shot 43 percent in the first half, led by 10 points from Ivy-Curry, while FAU was held to 38 percent, led by nine points from Greenlee. UTSA had a 20-19 margin in rebounding at halftime.
Martin sank a top-of-the-key 3-pointer to open the second-half scoring and Ivy-Curry answered with his own triple. Goldin added two in the paint before Ivy-Curry hit a pair at the line. Greenlee drilled a wing 3-pointer after a scramble for a lost ball opened up the defense but Deing got the triple back with his second trey of the game for a 46-43 lead at the first media timeout of the second half.
Germany hit one at the line but Bituba Baruiti answered with his first 3-pointer of the game on the other end, cutting the lead to one. That sparked an 8-0 run, with UTSA missing 10 of its last 11 shots, including a 3-pointer from Martin, to force a Coach Steve Henson timeout with FAU owning a 51-47 lead.
The run continued to 10-0 before Ivy-Curry hit a foul-line jumper to cut the lead to 53-49 with 11 minutes left and after a missed shot out of the timeout, Deing tipped in basket at the rim to cut the lead to 53-51.
Martin stretched the lead to 56-51 with his third 3-pointer of the game. Ivy-Curry snapped a streak of seven straight misses for the Roadrunners with a runner in the lane, narrowing it to 56-53. Forrest got three points back at the line on the other end for a 59-53 lead. Martin rose up and took the lead to 62-53 with six minutes left.
Consecutive and-1 plays for the Roadrunners – from McNeill and Germany – cut the lead to four with 4:54 left. Germany's finish cut the lead to 64-60 and McNeill finished one in transition to narrow the lead to 64-62 with 3:33 left.
Greenlee hit one at the line to take the lead to three with 3:29 left but McNeill hit an elbow jumper to cut the lead to one on the next possession. Greenlee drilled a 3-pointer with 2:22 left to regain a four point lead and Martin stretched the lead to six with 56 seconds left.
- UTSA -
