Riley's closing act not enough

Saturday, February 28

Nashville, Tenn.

3 p.m.

University of North Florida

8-22, 6-14ASun

Lipscomb

16-13, 12-8ASun

North Florida

Lipscomb

Riley ended his career by scoring 19 points

2/28/2009 11:32:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

UNF fell in its season finale at Lipscomb, 90-69

By: Adam Jonson, UNF Athletics

Box Score

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Senior Cortez Riley capped his career at the University of North Florida with a 19-point performance Saturday afternoon at Lipscomb, but his effort was not enough and the Ospreys dropped their season finale to the Bisons, 90-69.

UNF (8-22, 6-14 Atlantic Sun) outscored Lipscomb (16-13, 12-8) by four points in the second half, but fell into too deep a hole through the first 20 minutes of action.

The Bisons shot .543 percent from the field in the opening half and hung 49 points on the Ospreys to sport a 25-point lead at the break. The Ospreys managed only a 33.3 percent mark from the field in the first half. Riley notched 10 points in the first half and knocked down two of his three tries from distance.

In the final 20 minutes of play, UNF found its stroke from the floor, connecting on 47.2 percent of its shots and nailing six 3-pointers (6-for-13). Freshman Zack Riggins scored all eight of his points in the final frame by going 3-for-5 from the field, including a perfect 2-for-2 from beyond the arc.

Lipscomb took 32 tries from the free throw line and buried 24 of them while UNF managed only 14 shots from the charity strike and hit eight. The Bisons got 31 points off the bench, scored 28 in the paint and found 25 points off 18 UNF turnovers. The Ospreys forced 15 miscues and turned those into 16 points.

The Ospreys closed the game in strong fashion, outscoring its opponent by eight in the final five minutes. UNF sparked a 12-0 run in the closing minutes to cut the Bisons' lead to 17 with 3:34 to play but could not get any closer. Lipscomb rebuilt its 20-point lead with less than two minutes to play and the two teams traded baskets to push the score to its final.

Freshman Matt Sauey led all bench scorers in the game with 11. He also grabbed a team-best eight rebounds and drilled both of his attempts from 3-point land. Junior Eni Cuka and freshman Cameron Lovelace each finished with nine points.

Michael Lusk propelled the home team with a near-triple-double night, scoring 21 points and pulling down 11 boards. He took 13 shots from the free throw line, making 11, and came one assist shy the elusive feat. Adnan Hodzic also chipped in 21 points.

Saturday's game marks not only the end of the season for UNF, but also serves as the final cog of the Ospreys' transition into NCAA Division I competition. UNF has been a provisional member for the past four seasons, meaning it has been ineligible for postseason play each season and will enter the 2009-10 season as an unrestricted member of NCAA Division I.