The 2024-25 season has officially started for Florida Atlantic’s men’s basketball team (1-0). They opened on the road against the Indiana State University Sycamores (0-1) with a dominating 97-64 win, against the fellow mid-major team.

FAU and ISU played in the first Total Athlete Tip Off, which was a tournament for six Division I basketball teams. Athletics in Action ran the Tip Off, they are a sports organization that was founded in 1966. Their mission is to build up their athletes through the guidance of God as they are part of the sports ministry of Cru Ministries. 

It occurred in Dayton, Ohio at the John Wooden Family Fieldhouse. The Fieldhouse was built in dedication to John Wooden, who is referred to as one of the greatest National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) coaches of all time. He led the University of California, Los Angeles to 10 NCAA National Championship wins in 12 years. 

FAU guard Niccolo Moretti was the lead scorer on the night with 19 points, with 14 of them coming in the first half. He shot 75% from beyond the arc and 78% from the field. 

The Owls had six total players in double-digit scoring, a trend that head coach John Jakus hopes to continue throughout the season. 

“One, we’re capable of it. Two, when we play defense, there’s a chance to get 90 to 100 for sure. And the third thing I would say is that our group loves each other and they want to share [the ball],” said Jakus. “The truth is in the first two months, I hope that we have nine different players at a post-game press conference and the only way that’ll happen is if you have more than five guys in double digits consistently.” 

Gameplay began back-and-forth but a layup by Moretti with 11:24 changed the tide. FAU went on a 14-0 run to bring their lead up to 15 points. They continued to pound away offensively and maintained a substantial lead for the rest of the game, entering half-time with a 53-28 score. 

With 11:20 left in the second half, ISU got within 22, but FAU brought back their momentum and in a seven-minute span, extended their lead to 40 points.

FAU called a timeout during that stretch and Moretti said that Jakus told the team to “five grind.” This phrase meant to emphasize that they need to stay sharp and continue to play hard in order to not let up on the large lead. 

“We set up goals for the end of the game to stay mentally sharp and stay like that. And today, we unfortunately, we didn’t reach our goal. But [it] makes you think that there’s no dead time. You have to always give all your honor to say and always do the best,” said Moretti. 

FAU will head back to Boca on Nov. 8 to play their first home game against Coastal Georgia University at 7 p.m. The game will be streamed on ESPN+. 

“We would appreciate your support if you come out. We’re gonna play as hard, as fast and as exciting as we can,” said forward Baba Miller. 

Recap

ISU forward Markus Harding and FAU center Matas Vokietaitis started at the tipoff and the Owls quickly won the ball, but two missed shots by guard Ken Evans Jr. allowed ISU forward Aaron Gray to make a three out of the left wing to give the Sycamores the first score of the game. 

Owls guard Kyky Tandy answered back with a three of his own. Miller showed off his height by securing a large block over ISU, which gave guard Leland Walker the opportunity to fake a drive to the basket and dump it to Vokietaitis who easily finished, 7-6. 

FAU began a 7-0 run that was broken by ISU guard Samage Teal’s long-range three and Summers followed with another three out of transition. Teal made another three, giving ISU a 9-0 run in 70 seconds, he led the team with 21 points on the night. 

Moretti ended their run with two made free throws after being fouled while driving in the paint. Forward Kaleb Glenn had an impressive steal off ISU guard Jahni Summer’s pass and Glenn instantly got down the court to end on a dunk out of transition.

The game continued to go back and forth for a few drives, until guard Devin Vanterpool made a mid-range, giving the Owls a 21-18 lead and bringing in his first college points after redshirting last season. His basket sparked the 14-0 for FAU, which was led by Moretti and Walker exchanging buckets. 

ISU racked up five turnovers in the first nine minutes, which proved to be a consistent struggle for them throughout the game. They ended with 21 total turnovers. Teal showed off his strength from behind the three-point line by making another to end FAU’s run, 33-21. 

Evans Jr. came back with a three of his own, then stole the ball and set Glenn up with an alley-oop, forcing ISU to call a timeout. 

Out of the timeout, Evans Jr. continued with his streak and ran through a five-on-four to make the layup 42-21. On the next attempt, he quickly passed to Miller who easily put down a three. The Sycamores put two more points on the board but it didn’t phase FAU. Walker called a screen and Miller set it, allowing Walker to push past two ISU players, drawing the foul as he made the layup, 48-23. 

Teal continued to fight back and made a deep three-pointer, but Moretti drove down and fought through traffic to get himself at the rim. After the ball swirled around it dropped in and the first half ended with a score of 53-28. 

Entering the second half, ISU began to fight their way back and three-pointers cut the Owls’ lead to 21 points. But, once again, FAU had an answer. Miller made a step-back three, his second on the night. Forward Tre Carroll and center Mantas Kocanas each made a layup, extending it back to 28 with 15:22 left.

ISU slowly chipped away at the lead again, getting it down to 22 but FAU turned the gas back on when Walker layed it up for Miller who easily made the wide-open dunk, 74-50. Miller then showed his defensive strength by stealing the ball and passing it to Vokietaitis, who finished inside the paint. 

The teams exchanged turnovers, but the Owls were the ones who took advantage of it and Walker made two free throws, with 8:24 left. Walker sprinted down the court to intercept an ISU pass, he dribbled back down the court, hitting a spin move while passing to Tandy who instantly laid down a three, 81-53. 

The Sycamores guard Bruno Alocen came up with a layup of his own, but FAU wasn’t done. Carroll and Mantas each had large blocks that bounced off the backboard and FAU went on a 13-0 run, giving them their largest lead of the night with 40 points. ISU attempted to fight, going on a 6-0 run, but the 3:50 left on the clock wasn’t enough time for them. 

With 53 seconds left, Walker made another two-pointer and wrapped up the game for the Owls, with the final score of 97-64. 

Megan Bruinsma is the Sports Editor for the University Press. For more information regarding this or other stories email her at [email protected] or DM her on Instagram @megan_bruinsma or Twitter (X) @MeganBruinsma.