FAU picked up its first win of Conference USA bonus play, dominating North Texas defensively in a gritty 60-54 road win.

This was a huge win for the Owls after they dropped their first game of bonus play last Saturday. FAU is now 1-1 with two games left in the regular season, with a chance to move to a higher seed in the C-USA tournament, which starts March 13.

Last time these two teams met, the Owls conducted a masterful performance on the defensive end, holding the Mean Green to 47 points. It was a similar outcome in the second battle. This time around, FAU held North Texas to a mere 54 points – the Mean Green average 70.3 points per game.

Especially in the first half, FAU guarded the interior and the perimeter very well, as North Texas was struggling to make shots and push the ball up the court.

FAU’s offense was potent on a night where its best scorer was far from it, as standout guard Anthony Adger was held scoreless. Richardson Maitre and Xavian Stapleton picked up the slack with 15 and 12 points, respectively, Maitre shooting 3-5 from deep. Karlis Silins was a force down low, totaling 12 points, five rebounds and three blocks.

One of the areas where FAU struggled was the turnover battle. The Owls committed 19 turnovers, but their strong transition defense kept North Texas from capitalizing on those opportunities.

Coach Dusty May and the Owls return to action on March 6, where they’ll be taking on Louisiana Tech in the final home game of the season. Tip-off from The Burrow is slated for 7 p.m.

Zachary Weinberger is a staff writer with the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, email [email protected] or tweet him @ZachWeinberger