University of North Florida
0-1
Florida (#10)
1-0
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Florida | 31 | 38 | 69 |
| Florida | 37 | 40 | 77 |
Late Rally Comes Up Short for #MBB at No. 10 Florida
11/8/2013 5:45:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Game Book
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- The North Florida men's basketball team made a late charge before dropping a hard fought 77-69 decision Friday afternoon at No. 10 Florida.
The Ospreys (0-1) got a game high 16 points, including five three-pointers, from sophomore Beau Beech and 15 points, eight rebounds from senior Travis Wallace. Freshman Romelo Banks finished with 10 points, six rebounds in his collegiate debut for UNF.
The Gators (1-0) were led by 28 points from Casey Prather.
"The one thing I've been saying about this team is it's filled with guys that like to compete, and they showed that today," said UNF head coach Matthew Driscoll. "I was really proud of our ability and determination to keep coming back every time Florida tried to pull away. We did some good things on the floor but I felt like we probably sent them to the line too many times which put us in a hole. Overall, I was pleased. We have some talented players and got good contributions from the people that played in the game."
The Ospreys opened the game sluggishly on the offensive end scoring just six points through the first nine minutes. Florida would capitalize on UNF's slow start building a 25-10 advantage. The Gators were cool shooting from the floor, but connected on their first 17 free throw attempts to maintain an edge.
Trailing by 18 points (33-15) with just over six minutes to play in the first half, North Florida would outscore the Gators, 16-4, to trail 37-31 at the halftime break. The Ospreys scored the final 11 points of the frame including a three-pointer by Devin Wilson and a pair of treys by Beech.
Charles McRoy hit a jumper to open the second half pulling the Ospreys to within four points early in the second half, before UF tallied nine of the next 11 points to reopen a double-digit advantage. UNF kept the deficit there until the Gators hit their only two three-pointers of the game midway through the final period to take their largest lead of the game, 58-39.
A three from Beech halted an eight point UF spurt and sparked a UNF rally. Wallace would score the team's next three baskets and then Beech converted a four-point play followed by a trey by Jalen Nesbitt that trimmed the deficit to single digits, 64-55.
UNF would battle the rest of the contest but could get no closer than seven points as Florida held on for the season opening win.
For the game, North Florida out-rebounded Florida, 37-35, including a 13-8 advantage on the offensive end. UNF finished with nine three-pointers in the contest with five different players connecting from long distance. The Ospreys finished with 14 assists but had 17 turnovers. Florida went 27 of 32 from the free throw line while UNF made just eight of their 15 shots from the charity stripe.
The Ospreys will continue their season opening road stretch Monday in Little Rock, Ark., against UALR before visiting Middle Tennessee on Wednesday night. UNF makes its home debut Nov. 16 versus Southern University.
