JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - North Florida men's basketball raced out to a 12-2 lead in less than three minutes and never looked back as the Ospreys cruised to a wire-to-wire win against Bethune-Cookman, 88-48, Saturday, Dec. 10.
UNF (3-6) never trailed, leading for over 39 minutes, using 15 three-pointers and suffocating defense to overturn B-CU (4-5). The Ospreys held Bethune-Cookman to an anemic 28.1 field goal percentage, while shooting 51.7 percent on their end.
With the win, UNF remains undefeated on the new CSI Companies Court through three home games this season. North Florida permitted just 21 first half points, while holding Bethune-Cookman to the lowest point total by a Division I opponent since UNF held Kennesaw State to 45 Feb. 1, 2020.
Jose Placer paced the day with 21 points, while
Carter Hendricksen and
Jarius Hicklen tallied 15.
Oscar Berry was efficient, scoring 11 points to go with six defensive rebounds in his first start at North Florida.
FINAL SCORE
- Bethune-Cookman | 48
- North Florida | 88
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
1st Half
- UNF won the tip-off for the ninth-straight game and turned it into points only 15 seconds later, giving UNF the lead … from then on out, UNF didn't relinquish the advantage, going on a 12-2 run in less than three minutes to force Bethune-Cookman into a timeout … Hicklen converted a four-point play, Hendricksen hit a three-pointer and Berry added another during that initial spurt … UNF really piled it on from there, going on a 22-3 run to break things open before the half … the Ospreys held a 31-point lead at the half, holding the Wildcats to 22.6 percent shooting, a mark that would have set the North Florida single game field goal percentage defense record … the Ospreys hit 11 three-pointers in the first half alone.
2nd Half
- Placer picked up where he left off in the first half, adding 10 points in the second session as UNF shot 13-for-27 from the floor … North Florida had as large as a 42-point lead in the second half, while playing all 13 Ospreys in the final 20 minutes alone … UNF would outscore the Wildcats by nine in the second half to run away with the Ospreys largest margin of victory against a Division I team since defeating Kennesaw State by 41 Feb. 1, 2020.
BY THE NUMBERS
UNF
BETHUNE-COOKMAN
- Dylan Robertson | 10 points, 6 rebounds
- Zion Harmon | 8 points
- Damani McEntire | 6 steals, 3 assists, 3 rebounds
NOTABLES
- UNF is 5-0 all-time against Bethune-Cookman
- This was UNF's first game against the Wildcats since 2014. North Florida's previous highwater mark in margin of victory during the series was seven
- UNF's largest scoring run was 15, while Bethune-Cookman only mustered a 5-0 run
- North Florida outrebounded Bethune-Cookman by 15, while holding the Wildcats to 2-for-13 from beyond the arc
- UNF set a season high for three-pointers and assists. The Ospreys also tied highwater marks this season in blocks and rebounds
- UNF has scored over 80 points in four of the nine games this season
- Hicklen, Hendricksen and Placer all had four assists
- Placer posted the first 20-point scoring performance of his season and the 13th in his career
- North Florida's 40-point margin of victory was its largest against a Division I team since defeating Kennesaw State by 41 Feb. 1, 2020
- UNF has won the tip-off in all nine games this season
Postgame Comments
UP NEXT
North Florida lines up its last game against a Power Five team in the regular season as the Ospreys go up to Pittsburgh to take on the Panthers Saturday, Dec. 17 at 1 p.m.
