University of North Florida
Virginia Union
UNF plays tough but falters late in 66-53 loss to No. 1 Virginia Union
2/17/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
COLUMBUS, Ga. (Dec. 29, 2004) -
The Ospreys had the nation's top-ranked Division II squad, Virginia Union, on the ropes midway through the second half at the Columbus State Holiday Basketball Bonanza - they simply couldn't finish the job.
Despite leading on three occasions and frustrating and flustering Virginia Union all afternoon, the Ospreys faltered on the offensive end late, committing a rash of turnovers and being outscored 18-5 over the final seven minutes, in dropping a 66- 53 decision to the Panthers at CSU's Lumpkin Center.
Darius Hargrove scored 18 points to lead four Virginia Union players in double figures as the Panthers faced a second-half deficit for the first time this year to extend their record to 7-0. UNF snapped a three- game win streak and fell to 4-8.
"We didn't take advantage of our opportunities," UNF head coach Matt Kilcullen said. "We had too many turnovers and mental mistakes on the offensive end. I thought we played well enough defensively to win, but offensively we didn't make the plays."
UNF committed 24 turnovers, which led to 29 Virginia Union points, and managed only 16 total shots in the second half. The Ospreys shot 45 percent for the game (19-of-42) and won the rebounding battle 32- 31. VUU shot 39 percent (24-of-61).
Virginia Union appeared ready to make the game a runaway in the early going, racing out to a 14-3 lead in the first four minutes. UNF battled its way back behind the strong inside play of David Ashwell, Donny Lotz and James Grimball, however, and sliced into the early advantage.
The Ospreys cut their deficit to a point twice and trailed only 35-31 at halftime.
In the second half, UNF continued with more of the same and shut down Virginia Union's outside scoring opportunities to take its first lead. A 3-pointer by Riley Didion tied the game at 37 with 19:09 to play, and Grimball's layup gave UNF a 39-37 advantage a minute later. From there, Virginia Union went cold, missing five straight shots at one point.
UNF could only stretch its lead to two points, however, and never regained a rhythm on the offensive end. The Ospreys last lead came at 45-44 with 11:19 to play. The teams were tied at 48 at the 7:45 mark. Things stayed close from there, until a Ralph Brown layup and Duan Crockett 3-pointer on consecutive possessions pushed the Panthers' lead to 60-50 with 2:51 to go.
Lotz led UNF with 16 points, the only Osprey to score in double figures.
UNF will play North Carolina Central on Thursday at noon. The game will be broadcast tap delay on WIOJ- AM 1010 in Jacksonville at 6 p.m. The broadcast can be heard live via in the internet at www.unf.edu/sports.
