Ospreys Clipped in Cancun Challenge Final by Jacksonville State, 83-78

Wednesday, November 21

Cancun, Mexico

3:00 p.m.

University of North Florida

2-4

Jacksonville State

2-3

NORTH FLORIDA

Jacksonville State

JT Escobar takes a jump shot over a Mississippi State defender

Photo by: Blake Williams, MSU Athletics

Ospreys Clipped in Cancun Challenge Final by Jacksonville State, 83-78

11/21/2018 7:08:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

By: North Florida Athletics

OPENING TIP
Score: North Florida 78, Jacksonville State 83
Records: North Florida (2-4) | Jacksonville State (2-3)
Location: Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya (Cancun, Mexico)
The Short Story: North Florida drilled a season high 14 three-pointers in a hard fought 83-78 loss to Jacksonville State in Wednesday's Mayan Division championship game of the Cancun Challenge.

GAMEDAY MEDIA CENTER
Final Boxscore

NOTABLE NUMBERS
- Junior JT Escobar led the long distance barrage finishing with a season best 24 points highlighted by a career high 8 treys
- Fellow junior Noah Horchler narrowly missed his fourth double-double of the season tallying 14 points and 9 rebounds while junior Wajid Aminu chipped in 15 points
- Sophomore Trip Day also reached double digits, scoring 10 points
- JSU saw four players reach double figures paced by 23 points/10 rebounds from Jason Burnell
- #BirdsofTrey netted a season best 14 3PM, going 14-for-36 from the arc (39%)
- Gamecocks held a 25-13 edge in FT attempts, outscoring UNF from the charity stripe by 13 points

HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half Notes
- Both squads took turns with the lead in the early going as the score ping-ponged back and forth
- A 12-2 surge midway through the frame by Jacksonville State opend up an 18-11 lead
- The Ospreys whittled away at the deficit behind baskets from several players and eventually knotted the score at 26 following a jumper by Aminu with 7 minutes left in the half
- Aminu followed with a three-pointer on the next possession sparking a 13-2 spurt for the Ospreys | UNF owned a 39-30 lead at the end of the run
- Seven consecutive points for JSU tightened the gap, with Escobar hitting his fourth trey of the half in the closing seconds to give the Ospreys a 42-37 lead at intermission

Second Half Notes
- Similar to Tuesday's semifinal game vs Southern Miss, the Ospreys struggled offensively out of the break as JSU erased the halftime margin by scoring the first six points
- Garrett Sams drained a three to halt the drought and the margin remained a two possession gap for most of the remainder of the game
- North Florida pulled within two points on multiple occasions but were unable to ever even the scoreboard as the Gamecocks held on to earn the tournament title
- UNF trailed 81-78 in the final seconds when Escobar hit his 8th three-pointer of the game

INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
- Game marked the first meeting on the hardwood between UNF and JSU
- The Ospreys suffered their first loss in a game played in Cancun, having won 5 straight games and two Cancun Challenges before today's game
- Escobar and Horchler were both named to the Cancun Challenge All-Tournament team
- Escobar's 8 3PM marked the fourth highest single game total in program history | Most 3PM since Beau Beech made 8 treys vs LSU in 2015
- JSU edged North Florida, 34-33, on the boards
- North Florida dished out a season best 19 assists led by 6 from Ivan Gandia-Rosa

LAST WORD
"Consistency is almost becoming our consistent issue from not having it or being able to sustain it, Give credit to our guys for battling despite the struggles of Garret and Ivan. We kept fighting and got it to a one possession game in the final minute. That shows a lot of moxie and toughness on our part. It also demonstrates our ability to get contributions from lots of different players. We just have to keep on growing and understanding who we are. Our last three games (Wright State, Southern Miss and Jacksonville State) were like playing against some of the top teams in our league. I'm proud of the fight we showed and we obviously have more work to do and it starts on Tuesday at Florida." -- Head coach Matthew Driscoll

NEXT UP
North Florida continues its current four-game road swing with an in-state contest against Florida in Gainesville on Tuesday (Nov. 27)