SPORTS
When FAU was knocked out of the first round of the Sun Belt Conference’s postseason tournament by an inferior opponent on March 6, the bitterness of defeat was prevalent among the players, especially guard Ray Taylor, whose disappointment led to him being helped off the court by coaches. While that feeling won’t likely subside anytime soon, the Owls should still look back at the 2009-2010 season as a successful one.
In their second season under prolific head coach Mike Jarvis, the Owls finished below .500 at 14-15, but that was a dramatic improvement from a team that struggled to win six games just a year before. More impressively, the team that did so mostly consists of a group of players not old enough to have a legal drink.
Sure, the infant Owls ended their season by losing to a lesser seed (seeds are given to teams based on their win-loss record in the regular season) in the University of South Alabama — the Jaguars were the ninth seed in the tournament, while FAU was eighth — but Jarvis’ troops repeatedly demonstrated throughout the season that they are legit.
FAU looked as good as it had in recent years, and part of that was due to Taylor, a freshman who was trusted with pulling the offensive strings since the season opener. Taylor may be listed at a generous 5-foot-6, but he showed he has the tools to wreak havoc on opposing defenses, whether it was with his speed, dribbling, or knack for the killer pass.
Even in an 87-69 loss to the Miami Hurricanes in the Orange Bowl Classic on Dec. 19, Taylor shone, scoring 23 points and dishing out seven assists. That performance drew a positive review out of Jarvis, who was very critical of his team, and some kind comments from Hurricanes head coach Frank Haith.
Taylor averaged 14.2 points and six assists this season, the latter being the best in the Sun Belt and tied for ninth best in the nation. Those are scary numbers to look at when considering that Taylor was a freshman still learning the ins and outs of the college game. Somewhere, Jarvis is salivating at what is yet to come from his offensive orchestrator.
Taylor wasn’t the only young player to shine for the Owls, either. Freshman guard Greg Gantt and sophomores Shavar Richardson and Alex Tucker proved to be big parts of FAU’s success. Gantt especially impressed, scoring an average of 15.7 points per game and always providing a threat from the perimeter. He, along with Taylor, was named to the All-Sun Belt Third Team.
On the defensive side, no one was better than junior forward Brett Royster, the Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Year. Royster set the school’s single season and career records in blocked shots with 84 and 198, respectively.
Individual statistics weren’t the only reason this season should be labeled a success. From Royster’s blocks and thunderous dunks, to Taylor’s creative assists, FAU played a style of basketball that was as effective as it was aesthetically pleasing. As the Owls kept winning, more and more students began to attend games — FAU students have long been accused of being poor sports fans, with only a fraction showing up at the school’s sporting events — and with The Burrow constantly filled, the atmosphere improved significantly, giving FAU an actual home-court advantage feel. This was clear for everyone to see on Jan. 30.
On that night, the Owls thrashed rival FIU Golden Panthers 106-88, and FAU fans stormed the court to celebrate the lopsided victory with the players. It was a rare, eye-opening moment of support by FAU fans, the type that surely had the higher-ups at the Oxley Center with ear-to-ear smiles.
So, while the 2009-2010 Owls may have exited in the first round of the conference tournament, they exceeded expectations by attracting a typically disinterested fan base and winning more than twice the amount of games from the year prior with a team full of youngsters.
Talk about a successful season.
