FAU men’s basketball (25-3, 15-2 C-USA) defeated conference foe University of Texas at San Antonio Roadrunners (UTSA) (8-21, 2-16 C-USA) for the second time this year, completing the season sweep on Thursday night at Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena. 

The last time these two teams faced each other back on Jan. 19, the Owls defeated UTSA 83-64. This time around, the Owls nearly doubled their margin and finished with a 106-66 blowout win over the conference rival.

“We are focused on winning a regular season championship,” said head coach Dusty May. “We put ourselves in a position where we don’t have to hope and wish for other things to happen outside of our control. We are controlling what we can control, and we know we have the chance to clinch a co-championship on Saturday.”

The Owls started off quickly with a layup from sophomore guard Alijah Martin just 30 seconds into the first half. 

Both teams got off to a hot start, trading baskets in the opening minutes. Sophomore center Vladislav Goldin scored six quick points during that back-and-forth action to help the Owls take a 14-11 lead with 15:41 in the first half. 

Redshirt sophomore Giancarlo Rosado came off the bench to relieve Goldin and quickly added four points, pushing the Owls ahead 22-20.

Redshirt freshman forward Tre Carroll was also productive off the bench, grabbing three rebounds alongside a second-chance layup  that extended the Owls’ lead to 29-20. Rosado remained on the offensive attack and added another four points to grow the lead to 34-22.

Senior guard Michael Forrest knocked down his first three-pointer with four minutes left in the first half to extend the lead to 43-25.

The Owls defense kept constant pressure on UTSA’s offense forcing seven turnovers in the first half. Meanwhile on the offensive end, the Owls dominated around the rim, tallying 22 points in the paint in the first half. 

The Owls had an all-around team effort in the first half, with 9 players providing points to finish the period with the lead at 45-32. Rosado and Goldin totaled a team-high 8 points each, and Forrest followed up with 7 points. 

The Owls wasted no time after the break, scoring on back-to-back possessions in the paint to open the second half. Goldin remained active on the offensive glass, scoring on a second-chance layup to push their lead to 51-40 with 17:16 left in the second half. 

After an uncharacteristic slow start for the Owls’ three-point shooting, sophomore guard Nicholas Boyd and junior guard Bryan Greenlee made three-pointers on back-to-back possessions to extend the Owls’ lead to 58-40. 

Weatherspoon showed off his athleticism with a windmill dunk in transition, which Martin followed quickly with a three-pointer to grow their lead to 73-46. The Owls’ offense continued rolling with a Greenlee corner three-point off an inbound pass.

The Owls’ three-point shooting remained hot, Forrest added two three-pointers and Carroll sank one of his own from the corner to give the Owls a 93-56 lead with five minutes left in regulation. 

The Owls hit the 100-point mark with a spot-up three-pointer from Boyd, giving the Owls a 41-point lead. The scoring didn’t stop there as Carroll added 6 points with a minute left to close the game with a final score 106-66. 

Forrest ended the night with a team-high 19 points, followed closely by Rosado and Goldin who both scored 14. FAU had seven players finish with double-digit point totals.

“I thought it was awesome the way we were moving the ball, we looked like us again,” said May. 

As a team, FAU dominated around the rim, outscoring UTSA 46-22 in total paint points. The Owls ended the night shooting 51% from the field and 44% from three-point range. 

The Owls will now have to quickly shift focus as they prepare to take on the University of Texas at El Paso Miners (UTEP)(13-15, 6-11 C-USA) on Saturday, Feb 25. Tip off is scheduled for 2 p.m and will be broadcast on Stadium Sports Network.

Robert Griffin is a contributing writer with the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, email [email protected], or tweet him @RobertGriffinFL.