FAU Basketball: Schedules for men’s and women’s team have been announced

The season openers for men’s and women’s basketball will commence on Dec. 31.

The women’s basketball team running drills on Feb. 29, 2020. They finished 13-17 last season and look to improve this time around. Photo by Alex Liscio.

Richard Pereira, Staff Writer
October 27, 2020

FAU Athletics announced the schedules Monday for FAU men’s and women’s basketball.

In a normal season where games against teams outside of Conference-USA would be played, there will be none this season for FAU.

According to a press release from Assistant Athletics Director of Communications Katrina McCormack, the schedule is formatted in an 18-game season for conference-only play to focus on the health and safety of the student-athletes.

“In this format, the schools will play two games per visit at four different C-USA schools and host four select teams for a two-game series,” McCormack said.

This will be Dusty May’s third season at the helm for the men’s team, while Jim Jabir is coaching in his fourth for the women’s team.

On Dec. 31, the men’s team will start their season at home against Middle Tennessee with the women’s team traveling to face the same team in Murfreesboro.

FAU men’s basketball playing the Florida International University Panthers on Feb. 8, 2020. This was their second game against each other, and the Owls lost 66-59. Photo by Alex Liscio.

There will be a stretch where the men’s and women’s teams will play in a one-time home and away series against in-state rivals FIU on Jan. 14 and Jan. 16. 

At the end of the season, the teams who finish in the top 12 will qualify for the C-USA Championship tournament which is set for March 10-13 in Frisco, Texas.

“With this new format, teams will significantly reduce the amount of travel required during conference play in order to minimize any risks linked to COVID-19,” McCormack said. “The final week of the season will also be blocked out to be used for the rescheduling of potential postponed games.”

The schedules for both men’s and women’s basketball can be found on the FAU sports website, with the times yet to be confirmed.  

The men’s team will look to pick up where they left off after finishing 17-15 (8-10 C-USA) last season and having their postseason canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

FAU’s last game of the season was a win against Old Dominion in the first round as the ninth seed and would have set up a quarterfinal matchup with first-seeded North Texas.

For the women’s team, improvements will need to be made after an underwhelming 13-17 (7-11 C-USA) season and a first-round exit against UTEP in the C-USA tournament. They will look to regroup this season.

Richard Pereira is a staff writer for the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, email [email protected] or tweet him @Rich26Pereira.