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University of North Florida Athletics

Trip Day makes a layup over an opponent
Todd Drexler
78
Kennesaw State KSU 4-14 | 0-3 ASUN
85
Winner North Florida UNF 8-12 | 2-1 ASUN
Kennesaw State KSU
4-14 | 0-3 ASUN
78
Final
85
North Florida UNF
8-12 | 2-1 ASUN
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Kennesaw State KSU 34 44 78
North Florida UNF 35 50 85

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | North Florida Athletics

Ospreys Top Owls 85-78 to Earn ASUN Weekend Sweep

OPENING TIP
Score: North Florida 85, Kennesaw State 78
Records: North Florida (8-12, 2-1 ASUN) | Kennesaw State (4-14, 0-3 ASUN)
Location: UNF Arena (Jacksonville, Fla.)
The Short Story: All five starters reached double figures as the North Florida men's basketball team topped Kennesaw State, 85-78, on Saturday night in UNF Arena. The win gave the Ospreys a weekend sweep of ASUN competition. Trip Day led the way with 18 points while Noah Horchler posted 15 points and 13 rebounds.

GAMEDAY MEDIA CENTER
Final Boxscore PDF | Full Game Book

NOTABLE NUMBERS
- Trip Day recorded his seventh consecutive double-digit performance with his team high 18 point effort
- Noah Horchler tallied his sixth double-double of the year and second in a row with 15 pts/13 rebs
- Garrett Sams added 16 points for the Ospreys while Ivan Gandia-Rosa (12) and JT Escobar (11) also reached double digits
- Gandia-Rosa was a perfect 10-10 from the FT line, marking his third game this season with double-digit attempts without a miss
- Nick Masterson scored 24 points (5 3PM) to lead a trio of Kennesaw State players in double figures


HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half Notes
- North Florida got out of the gates quickly, grabbing a 13-4 lead through the opening six minutes of play
- Trip Day was the offensive catalyst scoring the Osprey's first eight points
- UNF held a 10-point advantage (20-10) , its largest of the half, with 12 minutes left on the clock
- Over the next 10 minutes, Kennesaw State outscored UNF, 19-7, to earn their first and only lead of the half at 29-27
- The Owls closed their rally with seven straight points as the Ospreys went cold from the floor and committed several turnovers
- Garrett Sams and Osborn Blount both drained three-pointers in the closing minutes of the half allowing the Ospreys to own a slim 35-34 edge at the break
- The two squads combined for 22 turnovers and attempted 25 free throws on 21 called fouls in the period
- UNF's defense held KSU to just 28% shooting from the floor

Second Half Notes
- A 10-2 spurt to open the second half by the Ospreys pushed the lead back near double digits
- Kennesaw State answered with an 8-3 surge of their own, trimming the deficit to just two with 13 minutes remaining
- The teams would trade baskets over the next several minutes of action before six straight points by the Ospreys gave them the lead for good
- The Owls continued to battle and pulled within a single point twice in the closing minutes
- North Florida held KSU scoreless for nearly all of the final two minutes of the game while making enough free throws to secure the victory

INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
- Win moved Coach Matthew Driscoll into 10th place all-time in ASUN for career conference wins (78)
- 35.5% FG pct for Kennesaw was the second lowest of the season for a UNF opponent (lowest by a D1 foe)
- Ninth game this season with 5 or more Ospreys in double figure scoring
- Driscoll improved to 15-2 all-time against Kennesaw State
- UNF finished 32 of 37 from the free throw line including a 24 of 27 performance in the second half
- Ospreys were just 7 of 30 from beyond the 3-point arc

LAST WORD
"It is really a challenge with the way our league games are scheduled playing on Thursday and Saturday against two different styled teams. With the inexperienced group that we have, the only things we can lean on are the games we played in the preseason that were closely scheduled like Michigan State-Michigan-VCU and the Mount St. Mary's-Wofford games. Those quick turnaround games really taught the guys how to wash out a game and get ready for the next one. I thought our guys did an outstanding job of locating the shooters and recognizing what was happening on the floor. We again demonstrated a great deal of resiliency, which is something we have had to do lots this season. They never got down on themselves even when Kennesaw continued to make runs at them. I felt like it made a huge difference when we were able to play Trip and Noah together at the end of the game and neither one of them fouled out. I felt like we controlled the boards with those two on the floor. It was nice to see us be able to score tonight, especially when we weren't making threes. I thought we missed a lot of easy, open threes that we normally knock down. It is what it is and the good thing is that we won." -- Head coach Matthew Driscoll

NEXT UP
North Florida plays four of its next five games on the road beginning Thursday (Jan. 18) at NJIT.

 
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