University of North Florida
Skidmore
UNF slugs Skidmore, 70-43
12/28/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 28, 2006
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The University of North Florida men's basketball team did something it hasn't had much practice at recently when it faced off with Skidmore on Thursday night at UNF Arena - leading from wire to wire.
The Ospreys never trailed against the Division III Thoroughbreds (1-6), jumping out to a 22-point lead in the opening half before cruising to an easy finish in a 70-43 win. The victory snapped a seven-game losing streak for the Ospreys (2-10) and extended their winning streak against non-Division I foes to six straight games.
Junior center James Grimball scored 19 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for his second double-double in three games to lead UNF, while Aaron Caruthers added 16 points and Chris Timberlake 15. UNF shot 49 percent for the game and outrebounded Skidmore 39-31, including a 23-11 margin in the second half.
"I was really pleased with our effort," UNF head coach Matt Kilcullen said. "Our guys came out strong and didn't let up. I thought we were sharp on the offensive end and really took advantage of our strengths. Wins are always good, but this is a nice boost of confidence for our guys heading back into conference play."
UNF came out firing early, jumping out to a 21-5 lead in the first eight minutes - fueled by a pair of 3-pointers from Timberlake and seven points from Caruthers. Skidmore clawed back to within 25-17 over the next five minutes but could never close the gap further. A 14-0 UNF run all but put the game out of reach from there. The Ospreys led 41-21 at halftime.
In the second half, Grimball caught fire - scoring 15 of his points - to keep the Ospreys in control. UNF led by 29 points twice - the last at 67- 38 with 5:14 remaining.
Jake shechtman led Skidmore with nine points.
UNF will face Atlantic Sun Conference foe Campbell next Tuesday to open its conference home schedule. Tipoff for that game is set for 4 p.m. at UNF Arena. The game will be carried live on the World Wide Web at www.UNFOspreys.com.
