Saturday, February 23
UNF Arena
4:15 PM
University of North Florida
70
vs
61
MERCER
UNF bid farewell to seniors James Grimball, Chris Timberlake and Jonson Yousefzadeh
UNF enjoys 'Senior' moments in 70-61 win
2/23/2008 7:12:36 PM | Men's Basketball
UNF knocks off Mercer for first A-Sun victory of season
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Going out in style never felt so good.
The University of North Florida men's basketball team knocked off conference foe Mercer 70-61 on Saturday afternoon at UNF Arena, sending its three seniors out in style in the squad's final home game of the 2007- 08 season.
James Grimball recorded his 14th career double- double with 15 points and 11 rebounds in his "Senior Day" farewell performance, while fellow senior Chris Timberlake added 14 points and four assists. UNF sophomore Stan Januska led all scorers in the game with 18 points.
UNF (3-24, 1-13 A-Sun) rallied from a 28-27 halftime deficit by shooting 52 percent in the second half and connecting on 12 of 16 free throws over the final 20 minutes. The Ospreys also held a 40-36 rebounding margin and committed a season-low eight turnovers.
Mercer (11-17, 6-9 A-Sun) shot 36 percent and hit five 3-pointers, but the Bears couldn't contain the Ospreys inside, where they were outscored 32-10.
"I can't tell you how proud I am of this team," UNF head coach Matt Kilcullen said. "It was just a matter of execution. We have been playing very good basketball at the end of games recently, and our guys were able to follow through on that tonight and execute when it mattered most. We shot 72 percent at the line and hit some big free throws late, including (Grimball). I was really proud of (Grimball) for coming through at the end."
UNF looked strong early, darting out to a 15-8 lead in the first eight minutes behind baskets from all five Osprey starters - Januska, Grimball, Timberlake, Germaine Sparkes and DeVon Jones. An 11-2 run by the Bears pushed them ahead 24-20 with 5:54 to play before halftime, and they carried a 28-27 advantage into the break.
In the second half, the Ospreys scored the first five points on baskets by Timberlake and Grimball to take a 32-28 lead. A 10-2 run followed that to give UNF a 44-34 lead with 13:17 remaining.
Mercer did rally - forcing three ties before finally grabbing their first lead of the half on Brian Mills 3- pointer with 4:31 left. Back-to-back baskets by Januska and Grimball pushed the Ospreys back ahead 57-55 on their next two possessions, however, and UNF never looked back.
UNF held its biggest lead at 70-58 in the waning seconds. The Ospreys hit nine of 11 free throws in the final two minutes to ice the victory, their first over Mercer in six meetings and their first in league play this year. Prior to Saturday, UNF had lost 14 straight A- Sun games dating to last season.
Hammonds added 10 points for the Ospreys. Brian Mills led Mercer with 16 points, while Shaddean Aaron had 15.
Jonson Yousefzadeh was the other senior honored prior to Saturday's game, along with Timberlake and Grimball. The Jacksonville native is just a junior in athletic eligibility but will graduate this spring and has elected to not return next season.
"They did it as people, students and then as athletes," Kilcullen said "I am proud of them because they are now ready to go out into the world and represent UNF as good citizens."
The Ospreys will close their season with a pair of road games next week in the state of Florida - Thursday at Stetson (8:15 p.m.) and Saturday at Florida Gulf Coast (7:15 p.m.). Both games can be heard on WBOB-AM 1320 in Jacksonville and watched live via the World Wide Web at www.ASUN.TV.
The University of North Florida men's basketball team knocked off conference foe Mercer 70-61 on Saturday afternoon at UNF Arena, sending its three seniors out in style in the squad's final home game of the 2007- 08 season.
James Grimball recorded his 14th career double- double with 15 points and 11 rebounds in his "Senior Day" farewell performance, while fellow senior Chris Timberlake added 14 points and four assists. UNF sophomore Stan Januska led all scorers in the game with 18 points.
UNF (3-24, 1-13 A-Sun) rallied from a 28-27 halftime deficit by shooting 52 percent in the second half and connecting on 12 of 16 free throws over the final 20 minutes. The Ospreys also held a 40-36 rebounding margin and committed a season-low eight turnovers.
Mercer (11-17, 6-9 A-Sun) shot 36 percent and hit five 3-pointers, but the Bears couldn't contain the Ospreys inside, where they were outscored 32-10.
"I can't tell you how proud I am of this team," UNF head coach Matt Kilcullen said. "It was just a matter of execution. We have been playing very good basketball at the end of games recently, and our guys were able to follow through on that tonight and execute when it mattered most. We shot 72 percent at the line and hit some big free throws late, including (Grimball). I was really proud of (Grimball) for coming through at the end."
UNF looked strong early, darting out to a 15-8 lead in the first eight minutes behind baskets from all five Osprey starters - Januska, Grimball, Timberlake, Germaine Sparkes and DeVon Jones. An 11-2 run by the Bears pushed them ahead 24-20 with 5:54 to play before halftime, and they carried a 28-27 advantage into the break.
In the second half, the Ospreys scored the first five points on baskets by Timberlake and Grimball to take a 32-28 lead. A 10-2 run followed that to give UNF a 44-34 lead with 13:17 remaining.
Mercer did rally - forcing three ties before finally grabbing their first lead of the half on Brian Mills 3- pointer with 4:31 left. Back-to-back baskets by Januska and Grimball pushed the Ospreys back ahead 57-55 on their next two possessions, however, and UNF never looked back.
UNF held its biggest lead at 70-58 in the waning seconds. The Ospreys hit nine of 11 free throws in the final two minutes to ice the victory, their first over Mercer in six meetings and their first in league play this year. Prior to Saturday, UNF had lost 14 straight A- Sun games dating to last season.
Hammonds added 10 points for the Ospreys. Brian Mills led Mercer with 16 points, while Shaddean Aaron had 15.
Jonson Yousefzadeh was the other senior honored prior to Saturday's game, along with Timberlake and Grimball. The Jacksonville native is just a junior in athletic eligibility but will graduate this spring and has elected to not return next season.
"They did it as people, students and then as athletes," Kilcullen said "I am proud of them because they are now ready to go out into the world and represent UNF as good citizens."
The Ospreys will close their season with a pair of road games next week in the state of Florida - Thursday at Stetson (8:15 p.m.) and Saturday at Florida Gulf Coast (7:15 p.m.). Both games can be heard on WBOB-AM 1320 in Jacksonville and watched live via the World Wide Web at www.ASUN.TV.
Friday, February 27
Friday, February 27
Wednesday, February 11
Saturday, January 24
