University of North Florida
-915, 67 ASun
Belmont
-224, 141 ASun
Bruins Slip Past Ospreys with Late Rally, 69-67
2/5/2011 9:55:14 PM | Men's Basketball
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The conference leading Belmont Bruins overcame a season-best 30 point performance by Parker Smith and a double-digit second half deficit to escape with a 69-67 victory over North Florida Saturday night at UNF Arena.
The Ospreys (9-15, 6-7 A-Sun) led by 11 midway through the second half but saw Belmont (22-4, 14-1) mount a spirited charge in the closing minutes to rally for the come-from-behind victory.
Smith, who scored 18 of his UNF career best total in the first half, made nine shots including four three-pointers along with going 8-for-11 from the free throw line. He became the first Osprey to reach the 30-point mark since Rashad Williams had 32 against ETSU on Feb. 5, 2006.
Brad Haugabrook also reached double figures for UNF scoring all 12 of his points in the second half. David Jeune pulled down a career-best 10 rebounds in the loss.
Jordan Campbell led the way for Belmont with 21 points including a trio of three-pointers in the Bruins game-winning rally. Mick Hedgepeth and Ian Clark also finished in double digits scoring 12 and 10, respectively.
“This was disappointing to let another game slip through our hands,” said UNF head coach Matthew Driscoll. “We have to be able to keep playing and continue doing all the things we are supposed to do in order to win a game like this against top caliber opponents. When we played like we know how to play we built a big lead and then for some reason we just quit doing those things. We also have to be better from the free throw line especially in the second half. We have to put this one behind us and get ready for JU on Tuesday.”
Several turnovers and cold shooting plagued the Ospreys in the opening minutes of the game as Belmont opened up an early 6-0 lead. Matt Sauey ended the UNF drought with a jumper at the 16:17 mark. Smith followed quickly with back-to-back baskets including his first three-pointer of the game to give North Florida a one-point advantage.
The game remained closely contested over the next several minutes but an 8-2 spurt by the Bruins late in the half allowed them to build a 28-20 lead with 1:10 remaining in the period. Smith rallied UNF by scoring the final six points of the period on a trey and three free throws cutting the deficit to just two, 28-26, at the half.
Out of the break, Brad Haugabrook scored eight points in a 15-9 run that pushed the Ospreys in front by four, 41-37, with 15:57 left to play. Smith then took over for UNF scoring 10 consecutive points in a 14-4 surge which gave the Ospreys a double-digit lead, 55-44, with 9:05 remaining.
With just over six minutes left, Belmont rallied behind a string of 15 straight points to regain the lead, 63-59. A pair of Smith free throws with 2:26 ended a four-minute scoreless stretch for the Ospreys.
Belmont widened its margin to seven with just over a minute to play but a Diaz layup and a trey by Granberry closed the deficit to two with 51 seconds remaining.
UNF sent Belmont to the line with 0:16 left and Jeune pulled down a missed free throw setting up a final possession for the Ospreys. North Florida worked the ball around and Sauey was fouled with 1.8 seconds on the clock but unfortunately was only able to make one of two shots from the charity stripe and the Bruins collected the loose ball to secure the win.
North Florida next begins a three-game road swing at cross-town rival Jacksonville Tuesday in the “River City Rumble” rematch. The Opsreys will play five of their final seven regular season games on the road.
