FORT MYERS, Fla. - Despite the Ospreys being down important pieces on their roster and having not played a game since Dec. 18, North Florida men's basketball was even, 60-60, at FGCU (11-4, 1-0 ASUN) before the Eagles were able to pull away late. The Ospreys (4-10, 0-1 ASUN) played only seven different players, with three seeing over 31 minutes. Placer logged 38 minutes and 14 seconds, scoring 15.
Carter Hendricksen became the newest member to join the 1,000-point club Wednesday, Jan. 5. The prolific scorer paced the Ospreys and was tied for a game-high with 16 points.
The game was about as even as they come, featuring 13 lead changes and 10 tie scores. The Ospreys had the lead for 15 minutes and 26 seconds, while the Eagles held the advantage for two seconds shy of 17.
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
1st Half
The first session ended deadlocked at 34-34 thanks to a driving layup by
Jose Placer with 13 seconds to go in the first half … Placer and a stingy UNF defense was the tale of the tape for UNF in the first half … at one point, UNF held FGCU scoreless for nine consecutive possessions, meanwhile Placer was putting away shots, leading all players with 14 heading into the break … down 22-24, UNF rattled off an 8-0 scoring run … FGCU followed with their own 8-0 clip just under four minutes later … the Ospreys held the lead for just under 10 minutes of the first half … neither team shot particularly well from three in the first half … UNF went 3-for-14 from long range, while FGCU was 4-for-13.
2nd Half
The game was decided late … Hendricksen drilled a three-pointer with 5:50 on the clock, tying the game at 60-60 … Caleb Catto hit a three-pointer for the Eagles and Kevin Samuel followed with a dunk off an offensive rebound, giving FGCU a five-point advantage and the lead for good … FGCU got ahead by as many as eight, but Hendricksen converted a layup and hit another three-pointer, cutting the deficit to 67-70 with 33 seconds remaining … FGCU hit its free throws and staved off a few good UNF looks to seal the game.
BY THE NUMBERS
UNF
FGCU
- Kevin Samuel | 16 points, 11 rebounds, 5 blocks
- Tavian Dunn-Martin | 12 assists, 11 points
NOTEABLES
- Hendricksen is the 18th Osprey in program history to reach 1,000-career points.
- Hendricksen is just two rebounds shy of 500.
- The Ospreys and Eagles met for the 34th time.
- The loss breaks a two-game winning streak against FGCU.
- It was the first meeting between these two teams since the 2019-20 season.
- Both teams put up good numbers in the paint. FGCU scored 36 points down low, while UNF put up 32.
COACH DRISCOLL'S COMMENTS
NEXT UP
UNF plays its ASUN home opener against Stetson Saturday, Jan. 8 at 5 p.m.
