FLORENCE, Ala. – No. 8 seed North Florida men's basketball fell to No. 7 seed Austin Peay in the first round of the 2025 Atlantic Sun Championships inside North Alabama's CB&S Bank Arena at Flowers Hall on Sunday evening.

Sophomore guard Jasai Miles posted 15 points and eight rebounds in 37 minutes. Graduate student forward Liam Murphy added 16 points on 6-10 from the field and 4-6 from three in 26 minutes, while sophomore guard Jaylen Smith added 14 points, four steals and two assists in 28 minutes.

APSU 90, UNF 69

RECORDS

North Florida | 15-17, 8-10 ASUN 
Austin Peay | 14-18, 8-10 ASUN

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

FIRST HALF: Sophomore guard Jasai Miles got the scoring started with a tough take in the lane. Sophomore guard Jaylen Smith found senior guard Nate Lliteras in transition to make it 6-0 and force an early Austin Peay timeout. North Florida led 10-2 at the under-16 media timeout – all 10 of which came inside the paint. Smith converted on a four-point play to make it 15-4 at the 14:01-minute mark. North Florida extended its lead to 25-13 at the halfway point of the half.  Graduate student forward Liam Murphy knocked down his third three of the first half to make it 31-13 at the 8:04-minute mark of the first half. After Austin Peay cut the margin under double-digits, Smith finished inside the lane to push it back to 35-24. Austin Peay answered back to trim its deficit to seven at 37-30 before Murphy buried his fourth three of the initial 20 minutes to push it back to 10. North Florida led 45-38 at the half. 

SECOND HALF: Miles knocked down a three out of the halftime break to make it 48-40. Austin Peay took the lead for the first time at 59-58 with 13:00 minutes on the board in the second half. Austin Peay led by eight at 72-64 before Miles answered back with a tough driving finish inside. Austin Peay posted its largest lead of the game at 21 with 35 seconds left in regulation. 

LEADERS BY THE NUMBERS

UNF
Liam Murphy | 16 points, 4-6 3FG, 2 rebounds
Jasai Miles | 15 points, 8 rebounds
Josh Harris | 12 points, 8 rebounds, 5-6 FG

APSU
Isaac Haney | 20 points, 6 rebounds
Darius Dawson | 20 points, 9-9 FG
LJ Thomas | 20 points, 6 assists, 3 rebounds

NOTES

• North Florida jumped out to an 8-0 lead and led 10-2 at the under-16 media timeout.
• All of the initial 10 points came inside the paint. 
• Murphy knocked down four threes and led all Ospreys with 14 points in the first half.
• The graduate transfer finished with a team-high 16 points.
• Miles scored 15 points to finish the season with 10 or more points in 29 of 32 games.
• North Florida hit 10 or more threes in 26 of 32 games.