Men’s Basketball Takes on ASUN Tournament

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - North Florida men's basketball begins ASUN Championship play in the first round against eighth-seeded Bellarmine Monday night in Lynchburg, Va. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. as the two teams vie for a chance to take on second-seeded Liberty at Liberty Arena the following evening.

The 2023 ASUN Championship is comprised of 10 teams, with the top six seeds earning a bye in the first round of the tournament. Seeds seven and eight along with nine and ten compete against one another to advance to Monday's quarterfinals.

Games are hosted at campus sites according to seeding, with teams reseeding after the quarterfinals.

GAME DETAILS
Date: Monday, Feb. 27
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Lynchburg, Va.
Opponent: Bellarmine
Watch: ESPN+
Live Stats: statbroadcast.com

All-Time Series: Series tied, 1-1

UNF and Bellarmine are meeting for the third time and for the first time outside of the UNF Arena
North Florida dispatched Bellarmine Friday night in the regular season finale
Bellarmine is in just its second year at the Division I level after winning the ASUN Championship Tournament a year ago

An Osprey Win Would....

Make UNF 12-12 all-time in ASUN Championship play
Give UNF a 7-2 mark in February
Give UNF its first win in a neutral site setting this year
Advance UNF to Tuesday's quarterfinals matchup

PROJECTED UNF STARTING FIVE
G - Oscar Berry (4.7 PPG | 2.1 RPG | 0.7 APG)
G - Jarius Hicklen (12.0 PPG | 3.7 RPG | 3.2 APG)
G - Jose Placer (14.1 PPG | 2.3 RPG | 2.8 APG)
F - Carter Hendricksen (16.5 PPG | 6.3 RPG | 2.1 APG)
F - Jadyn Parker (6.9 PPG | 4.8 RPG | 0.7 APG)

LAST TIME OUT
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - In his 134th game in a UNF uniform, UNF great Carter Hendricksen scored 25 points and brought down nine boards as the Ospreys (14-16, 9-9 ASUN) rolled Bellarmine, 79-67, in the regular season finale on Senior Night Friday, Feb. 24.

COACH DRISCOLL ON TOMORROW'S GAME
"It's the time of year that everyone knows so well and looks forward to as much as anything -- March Madness! The key is knowing that the end goal is to survive and advance, going 1-0 with each opportunity. It's critical to embrace the ability to worry about today and understand that tomorrow will bring its own worries. Bellarmine, as we know from Friday, is very talented and efficient on both sides of the ball. They shot 58 percent at the rim and 44 percent from three-point range, demonstrating their versatility as we go into a rematch with the Knights." -- Head Coach Matthew Driscoll

NORTH FLORIDA NOTES

FEELING IT IN FEBRUARY
UNF is 6-2 in February this season and 65-37 in the month during head coach Matthew Driscoll's tenure at North Florida. The Ospreys have defeated JU twice, Stetson, Lipscomb, EKU and Bellarmine

NINE DIMES
Jarius Hicklen is certainly known for his shooting ability, but his assist total was what really caught the eye in the box score during Thursday's win. The guard dished out nine assists, the most by a UNF player since Feb. 26, 2021.

"NEWRTAL"
UNF is playing its first neutral site game of the year and its first neutral site game of since taking on North Alabama at Swisher Gymnasium in the ASUN Championship Quarterfinals back in 2021.

TOURNAMENT PLAY
UNF is 11-12 in ASUN Championship play and playing in its 14-straight tournament. North Florida last played a postseason game at Liberty back in 2019 when the Ospreys squared off with the Flames in the semifinals.

40 OR BELOW
When UNF holds opponents below 40 percent shooting, the Ospreys are 87-8 when holding foes below that mark. UNF did so against EKU, keeping the Colonels without a three-pointer in the second half.

ALL OVER THE RECORD BOOK
Carter Hendricksen was already over the UNF record book quite a bit heading into the season, although the last few weeks have really sent him all throughout the ledger. Hendricksen ranks in the top ten in: points (2nd - 1,635), field goals made (2nd - 533), field goals attempted (2nd - 1,324), three-pointers made (4th - 269), three-pointers attempted (1st - 775), free throws made (4th - 300), free throw percentage (6th - .829), rebounds (4th - 738), assists (T-9th - 226) rebounding average (5.5 - 10th), defensive rebounds (2nd - 592), defensive rebound average (5th - 4.4), games played (2nd - 134), games started (104 - T-7th) and minutes (4th - 3,664)

SCOUTING BELLARMINE

Bellarmine comes into play 14-17 and 9-9 in league play, currently sitting one spot ahead of UNF at seventh.
The Knights knocked off Jacksonville by two on Thursday, a win that followed up a 68-67 Senior Day win against Central Arkansas
BU is 6-10 on the road this season, going 2-2 over its last four ASUN road games
Head coach Scott Davenport is in his 18th season leading the way at Bellarmine, doing the majority of his coaching at Bellarmine leading a dominant Division II BU squad.
Bellarmine won the ASUN Championship Tournament last year, downing Jacksonville
The Knights are known for their unique style of play which emphasizes passing while reducing the amount of dribbling as much as possible
Garrett Tipton paces the scoring, notching 12.8 points per game. Freshman Peter Suder isn't far behind, with graduate student Juston Betz providing the most experience with 127 games played

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Oscar Berry

Carter Hendricksen

Jarius Hicklen

Jadyn Parker

Jose Placer

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