BOCA RATON, Fla. – Austin Trice scored 19 points and hauled in 14 rebounds to lead three in double figures on Tuesday night as Old Dominion dropped an 81-62 decision at Florida Atlantic in a Conference USA matchup.
"When FAU made their run, our response was just inadequate. They were more physical, and we didn't respond in a way to give us a chance," said ODU Head Coach Jeff Jones.
The Monarchs got out to a quick start on the heels of six straight points by Kaul Ezikpe, Mekhi Long and CJ Keyser to lead 8-5 at the 16:47 mark. Following a bucket by Vladislav Goldin, ODU (9-14, 4-6) scored the next five points on a layup by Trice and a 3-pointer from Keyser to lead 13-7 with 14:58 left.
FAU (15-9, 8-3) used a 17-2 run over the next nearly five minutes to lead 24-15 at the 10:11 mark after a 3-pointer from Bryan Greenlee. That run was a part of 31-6 blast that pushed the Owls lead to 38-19 after a Bitumba Baruti jumper with 4:25 remaining in the half.
The Owls went wild behind the 3-point line hitting 9-of-18 in the first half and used an Alijah Martin 3-pointer to lead 46-23 with 96 seconds left in the half.
In the second half, the advantage grew to 33 points twice as a Brandon Weatherspoon 3-pointer for a 73-40 lead with 10:07 remaining. The Monarchs fought their way back and used a Trice layup with 10 seconds left for the eventual final score of 81-62.
Ezikpe added 12 points and five rebounds, while Keyser chipped in with 11 points to lead the Monarchs. ODU hit 23-of-54 from the floor (42.6%), while going 4-of-14 from behind the arc (28.6%).
FAU was paced by Michael Forrest with 16 points, Alijah Martin added 12 and the duo of Johnell Davis and Weatherspoon scored 10 apiece coming off the bench. The Owls hit 32-of-68 from the floor (47.1%) and were 13-of-32 from 3-point range (40.6%).
Old Dominion now heads to Murfreesboro, Tenn. to tangle with Middle Tennessee on Thursday night for a 7 p.m. tip.
Hot Start Sinks Men's Basketball In Loss At FAU
