Tuesday, February 12
UNF Arena
7:00 PM
University of North Florida
67
vs
57
SAVANNAH STATE
Cortez Riley scored a career-high 20 points
Ospreys snap skid, down Savannah State
2/12/2008 9:43:48 PM | Men's Basketball
UNF posts 67-57 victory to snap 20-game losing streak
BOX SCORE
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The University of North Florida men's basketball team knew a happy ending would come at some point this season as it battled through a nightmarish 20-game losing streak. It finally did on Tuesday night at UNF Arena.
The Ospreys rallied from a halftime deficit against Savannah State with strong second-half shooting and a career-high 20 points from junior walk- on Cortez Riley in posting a 67-57 victory. The win snapped the school-record losing streak for UNF (2- 22) and avenged a 58-32 loss to the Tigers (11-17) earlier this season.
More important to UNF head coach Matt Kilcullen, however, was the joy it brought to his team's lockerroom after the game.
"I am tremendously happy for our guys because they fought hard and went out did what needed to be done," Kilcullen said. "Our guys were laughing and smiling in the lockerroom. They feel good about themselves. That is what means the most to me as a coach. Our players and our assistant coaches have worked so hard to play better basketball every day. We are going to enjoy this one tonight, and then we will see where it takes us tomorrow."
The Ospreys got a 13th career double- double from senior James Grimball to aid in their effort on Tuesday night. The Jacksonville native scored 18 points and grabbed 15 rebounds, including 10 points and 10 rebounds in the first half. Tom Hammonds added 15 points, including a 7-of-9 free throw effort in the second half. The junior was 4-for-4 from the stripe in the final minute. Riley scored 14 of his points in the second half.
UNF shot 47 percent for the game and 52 percent in the second half and outrebounded the Tigers 40-34. Savannah State shot 37 percent and forced 22 UNF turnovers, but even those miscues weren't enough to slow down the Ospreys who built a sizable lead midway through the second half and never let the Tigers get closer than seven points down the stretch.
Joseph Flegler led the Tigers with 18 points, while Curtis Brown added 10.
UNF started off strong and led 19-12 with 8:20 to play before halftime. The Tigers rallied with a 12-2 run over the next seven minutes and led 27-23 before Chris Timberlake drainedd a 3-pointer at the buzzer to pull the Ospreys within 27-26 at the break.
In the second half, the teams battled back and forth before UNF finally took control. A Hammonds layup with 13:25 remaining put the Ospreys in front for good, and a 13-2 run over a six-minute stretch gave the Ospreys their biggest lead of the night at 55-42 lead with 4:22 remaining. A Keron McKenzie 3-pointer brought the Tigers within 61-54 with 42 seconds left, but they would get no closer.
UNF combined to go 6-for-6 from the line in the final 30 seconds to seal the win, the team's first since upending Concordia College 57-41 on Nov. 16.
"It wasn't pretty from an offensive point of view," Kilcullen said, "but you have to credit Savannah State for a lot of that. They really came after us. In the end, our guys wanted to win the game and they went out and did it. It is a good feeling, no doubt."
Next up for the Ospreys will be a rematch with cross-town rival Jacksonville University in the SunTrust River City Rumble on Friday night. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Arena downtown, with the contest being aired live regionally on Comcast Sports Southeast (CSS) as the A-Sun Game of the Week.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The University of North Florida men's basketball team knew a happy ending would come at some point this season as it battled through a nightmarish 20-game losing streak. It finally did on Tuesday night at UNF Arena.
The Ospreys rallied from a halftime deficit against Savannah State with strong second-half shooting and a career-high 20 points from junior walk- on Cortez Riley in posting a 67-57 victory. The win snapped the school-record losing streak for UNF (2- 22) and avenged a 58-32 loss to the Tigers (11-17) earlier this season.
More important to UNF head coach Matt Kilcullen, however, was the joy it brought to his team's lockerroom after the game.
"I am tremendously happy for our guys because they fought hard and went out did what needed to be done," Kilcullen said. "Our guys were laughing and smiling in the lockerroom. They feel good about themselves. That is what means the most to me as a coach. Our players and our assistant coaches have worked so hard to play better basketball every day. We are going to enjoy this one tonight, and then we will see where it takes us tomorrow."
The Ospreys got a 13th career double- double from senior James Grimball to aid in their effort on Tuesday night. The Jacksonville native scored 18 points and grabbed 15 rebounds, including 10 points and 10 rebounds in the first half. Tom Hammonds added 15 points, including a 7-of-9 free throw effort in the second half. The junior was 4-for-4 from the stripe in the final minute. Riley scored 14 of his points in the second half.
UNF shot 47 percent for the game and 52 percent in the second half and outrebounded the Tigers 40-34. Savannah State shot 37 percent and forced 22 UNF turnovers, but even those miscues weren't enough to slow down the Ospreys who built a sizable lead midway through the second half and never let the Tigers get closer than seven points down the stretch.
Joseph Flegler led the Tigers with 18 points, while Curtis Brown added 10.
UNF started off strong and led 19-12 with 8:20 to play before halftime. The Tigers rallied with a 12-2 run over the next seven minutes and led 27-23 before Chris Timberlake drainedd a 3-pointer at the buzzer to pull the Ospreys within 27-26 at the break.
In the second half, the teams battled back and forth before UNF finally took control. A Hammonds layup with 13:25 remaining put the Ospreys in front for good, and a 13-2 run over a six-minute stretch gave the Ospreys their biggest lead of the night at 55-42 lead with 4:22 remaining. A Keron McKenzie 3-pointer brought the Tigers within 61-54 with 42 seconds left, but they would get no closer.
UNF combined to go 6-for-6 from the line in the final 30 seconds to seal the win, the team's first since upending Concordia College 57-41 on Nov. 16.
"It wasn't pretty from an offensive point of view," Kilcullen said, "but you have to credit Savannah State for a lot of that. They really came after us. In the end, our guys wanted to win the game and they went out and did it. It is a good feeling, no doubt."
Next up for the Ospreys will be a rematch with cross-town rival Jacksonville University in the SunTrust River City Rumble on Friday night. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Arena downtown, with the contest being aired live regionally on Comcast Sports Southeast (CSS) as the A-Sun Game of the Week.
Friday, February 27
Friday, February 27
Wednesday, February 11
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