UNF digs early hole in loss to BYU

Box Score

Traveler's Invitational Blog

PROVO, Utah – The University of North Florida men's basketball team got a little bit too much of BYU's Jonathan Tavernari in a 74-41 loss in front of 7,778 at the Marriott Center on the first day of play at the BYU Traveler's Invitational.

Tavernari scored 25 points, knocking down five shots beyond the 3-point arc and 10 overall.

BYU (3-0) blistered the nets in the second half, shooting 61.5 percent from the field after taking a 35-12 lead into the locker room. UNF (0-2) struggled from the floor in the opening half, shooting just 20 percent, but showed improvement in the second frame, utilizing a lineup that included four freshmen on the floor for most of the half.

Newcomer Cameron Lovelace knocked down three shots beyond the 3-point arc to lead the Ospreys with nine points overall. The combination of Lovelace, Zack Riggins, Matt Sauey and Jordan Fair scored 21 of UNF's 29 points in the second half.

"The freshmen did a nice job tonight," UNF head coach Matt Kilcullen said. "I liked how the guys came out in the second half, we scored on four of our first five possessions, and you can't waste possessions on this level."

UNF did not get off to the start it was looking for, falling behind early and only scoring 12 points in the first half, an all-time low for the team for points in a half. Cortez Riley and Germaine Sparkes each led the Ospreys with four points in the half.

Lee Cummard, the reigning Mountain West Player of the Year, was held scoreless for the first 12 minutes of the contest, but Tavernari carried the load for the Cougars, scoring 13 points in that opening stretch of play.

UNF trailed 35-12 at the break, knocking down five of its 25 shots.

The Ospreys came out with more fire in the second frame, outscoring BYU 7-3 over the first 2:30 of the half. The Ospreys cut the Cougar lead to 19 on two occasions in the second half, but could not get any closer.

BYU ultimately outscored the Ospreys 39-29 in the second half, but the Ospreys did hold the Cougars to a season-low 74 points.

BYU won the battle of the boards 45-27, with Cummard collecting a game-high 12 boards. Cortez Riley and Matt Sauey led UNF with five rebounds apiece.

Tavernari was the only player in the game to score in double figures. Chris Miles and Charles Abouo each scored nine for the Cougars.

UNF committed 16 turnovers in the game, compared to 10 for the Cougars.

The win was the 49^th in a row for BYU at the Marriott Center, continuing the nation's longest home winning streak. Action at the BYU Travelers Invitational continues on Friday when UNF takes on Cal-Poly (0-2) at 8 p.m. EST.

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