Saturday's result: Troy 86, FAU 80
Bye-bye bye?
FAU's 86-80 loss to Troy deals a significant blow to the Owls' chances of earning a bye in the upcoming Sun Belt Tournament.
Originally published on
2/20/2010
by
Chuck King
> Audio: Head coach Mike Jarvis on ESPN760 after game
> Boxscore: Team, individual stats from game
The youthful exuberance FAU has ridden into Sun Belt title contention could not overpower Troy’s senior-laden starting five in a 86-80 loss in Troy, Ala. on the Trojans’ senior night.
Though the career-high 31 points from reserve Shavar Richardson who, as a sophomore, is as close to grizzled veteran as nearly any FAU player gets, almost propelled the Owls to another improbable victory.
Troy (16-11, 11-5 Sun Belt) built a 12-point lead with five minutes remaining before Richardson rallied the Owls. In the next four minutes he drained three 3-pointers and converted all three free throws when fouled on another attempt.
FAU (14-13, 10-6) cut the lead to two points with nine seconds remaining on Ray Taylor’s drive, but couldn’t pull any closer.
Troy’s five senior starters contributed 74 points and 28 rebounds to the Trojans’ effort, led by Richard Delk’s 21 points. The Trojans missed only one field goal attempt in the final six and a half minutes, and drained five of six free throws in the game’s waning seconds.
The loss drops FAU out of what at the start of the day was a five-way tie for the overall top-spot in the Sun Belt Conference. Perhaps more importantly, Troy’s victory coupled with Middle Tennessee’s 81-54 blowout of South Alabama relegates FAU to third place in the East Division, a game behind the Trojans and Blue Raiders.
The two division winners plus the team with the next best conference record receive byes in the Sun Belt Tournament.
One of the Owls’ two remaining regular season games is the season-finale against Middle Tennessee on Saturday at The Burrow. FAU also hosts Western Kentucky on Thursday. The Hilltoppers toppled West Division co-leader Arkansas St. 78-76 in overtime on Saturday.
GameBrowser: Troy 86, FAU 80
Moving Forward: Richardson needed only 24 minutes to score his 31 points – he hit 6-of-12 3-point attempts. …Alex Tucker’s 8 points included 3-of-3 shooting from the field and he doled out 8 assists. …Jordan McCoy grabbed 5 rebounds in 16 minutes.
Moving backward: Greg Gantt was 4-of-14 on the night, 2-of-8 from 3-point land. …Sanchez Hughley could never get into a rhythm, finishing with 6 points, one rebound and an assist. …Troy out-rebounded FAU 34-21.
Stat download: 64.2 - Troy’s shooting percentage on the night.
Up next: Western Kentucky visits The Burrow on Thursday at 7 p.m.