JACKSONVILLE -- North Florida men's basketball opens up its 2021-22 ledger with a monumental road trip featuring five games in nine days. The Ospreys tip-off the trek with games on back-to-back nights in the Lone Star State as UNF visits Texas Tech on Tuesday (8 PM ET) before playing Wednesday (8 PM ET) at Texas A&M.
 

PROBABLE STARTERS

G - Jose Placer (14.5 PPG | 2.7 RPG | 3.3 APG)
G - Emmanuel Adedoyin (8.6 PPG | 2.4 RPG | 4.1 APG)
F - Carter Hendricksen (14.9 PPG | 4.8 RPG | 2.7 3PM/g)
F - Dorian James (8.4 PPG | 5.1 RPG | 1.8 APG)
F - Jonathan Aybar (7.3 PPG | 5.0 RPG | 1.2 BPG)
 

HARDWOOD DRIBBLINGS

- North Florida will play five games in nine days to tip off the 2021-22 season including three games in a four day span this week
- Ospreys are 8-21 all-time in season lid-lifters and are looking to end a five-game losing skid in debuts | UNF is 2-10 under Head coach Matthew Driscoll
- Last opening day victory was Nov. 13, 2015 with a 93-81 upset win at Illinois
- UNF will be facing both Texas Tech and Texas A&M for the first time in program history
- This will be the third time the Ospreys have started a season with back-to-back games on consecutive nights in different locations | 2017-18 opened with games at Michigan State & Michigan | 2010-11 began with games at Florida State & Pittsburgh
- Marks the second straight season that North Florida opens its ledger with five consecutive road tilts
- North Florida will amass 5,854 miles of air travel in their season-opening trek and play games in three different time zones (Central, Mountain, Pacific)
- Entering this season, UNF has played 80 guarantee games during the Driscoll Era (2009-present) including 65 versus Power 5 opponents
- UNF finished 8-15 last season (6-6 ASUN)
- Ospreys were picked to finish 7th of 12 teams in the ASUN preseason coaches poll | UNF has finished in Top 4 of the ASUN in each of the past eight seasons
- Nine players return for the Ospreys this season including four starters
- Five of UNF's top six scorers from last year return led by the duo of junior Carter Hendricksen (14.9 PPG) and redshirt-sophomore Jose Placer (14.5 PPG) 
- Hendricksen, a preseason All-ASUN selection, was named All-ASUN (1st team) last year while Placer garnered All-ASUN (2nd team)
- Jonathan Aybar, who ranked second in the ASUN for blocked shots, earned ASUN All-Freshman accolades in 2020-21
- North Florida (AKA: "Birds of Trey") led the nation for 3PM in 2020 and 2016, ranked 14th in the nation last season with 10.0 per game (229 3PM)
- Ospreys have connected on 10+ treys in a game 14 games this season (reached double-digits 13x last year in 11 more games)
- All 9 returning UNF players have made and attempted a trey in their careers
- MILESTONE WATCH: Hendricksen needs 129 points to become the 18th player in program history with 1,000 points and is 60 rebounds shy of 500 (Would be only 10th player in program history with both) | With 192 wins at UNF, Driscoll is just 8 victories shy of 200 and needs just four victories to move into 3rd all-time in ASUN coaching history

SCOUTING REPORT | Texas Tech
- Texas Tech was 18-11 last year and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament
- Red Raiders returned five players including three starters
- Tech welcomes six upperclassmen transfers including Davion Williams, who averaged 21.2 PPG at Hampton
- TTU is 57-1 against non-conference opponents at United Supermarkets Arena over the last seven years
- Head coach Mark Adams is beginning his first season at the helm of the Texas Tech program but owns 554 career victories as a head coach
- While this is first meeting between UNF and TTU on the hardwood, Ospreys are 0-5 all-time against current members of the Big 12 conference (Iowa State 0-1 | Kansas State 0-3 | Texas 0-1) 

SCOUTING REPORT | Texas A&M
- Texas A&M finished 8-10 in last year's COVID-shortened season
- Aggies have a pair of starters returning to go along with a group of 10 newcomers including 7 transfers
- Top returning scorer is Quenton Jackson (10.4 PPG)
- Head coach Buzz Williams is 24-24 entering his third season at the helm of the TAMU program | Owns a 274-179 career record entering his 15th season (Led programs at New Orleans, Marquette and Virginia Tech)
- North Florida is 0-25 all-time versus SEC teams with A&M marking the first of three SEC teams on the schedule as UNF will also play at Kentucky and Florida | Previous meetings with SEC squads (Alabama 0-4 | Arkansas 0-3 | Auburn 0-2 | Florida 0-9 | LSU 0-3 | Mississippi State 0-1 | Missouri 0-2 | South Carolina 0-1)

DRISCOLL CONFIDENTIAL
"The famous cheer 'We want another one just like the other one' is ringing loud loud and clear with us as we begin our journey through our 13^th season. This will mark the third time we have opened a season with back-to-back road games against Power 5 teams on consecutive nights, so it's really nothing we haven't prepared for before. We are super eager and excited for this group to get back to a more 'normal' travel and game day experience following last year's various scenarios on the road. We will be exposed to some amazing atmospheres right off the bat with our games at Texas Tech and Texas AM. Having spent six seasons in the Big 12, I am very familiar with both of these venues and I know it is guaranteed to be loud, energized and raucous throughout the 40 minutes."
-- Head coach Matthew Driscoll

UP NEXT
Following their Texas two-step, North Florida continues its marathon season-opening road swing on Friday night (Nov. 12) against Grand Canyon in Phoenix, Ariz. UNF will also visit Arizona State (Nov. 15) and No. 2 UCLA (Nov. 17) during the trip.

FOLLOW THE ACTION: Stay connected with the Ospreys all season long by following @OspreyMBB and @UNFOspreys on Twitter for all of the latest UNF men's basketball updates. Be sure to use the hashtag #SWOOPLife and #BirdsofTrey