UNF's #1 Student-Run News Source

UNF Spinnaker

UNF's #1 Student-Run News Source

UNF Spinnaker

UNF's #1 Student-Run News Source

UNF Spinnaker

Strong UNF men’s basketball defense leads to 80-70 victory over the Austin Peay Governors

Video by Michael Herrera
It rained threes once again as UNF men’s basketball (9-4) defeated the Austin Peay State University Governors (4-7) for an  80-70 victory on Dec. 16 at the UNF Arena. There were 20 three-pointers made between the two teams.

In the tight opening minutes, the Ospreys and Governors exchanged points early behind quick scores and driving into the paint with force. UNF forward Chris Davenport scored on a tip-in and the pace began to pick up for UNF.

Starting guard Nick Malonga played for 13 minutes and finished with just 3 points. Photo by Michael Herrera
Starting guard Nick Malonga played for 13 minutes and finished with just 3 points.
Photo by Michael Herrera

On the next UNF possession, a three-pointer from UNF forward Beau Beech swished through the net. This would be the first of 13 made from behind the arc for the night for the NCAA three-point leading Ospreys, but they shot a relatively low 34 percent (13 for 38) from downtown.

As the clock expired for the half, UNF guard Trent Mackey sunk a three-pointer to send the Ospreys to the locker room with a huge 41-24 lead.

Mackey said the three-pointers would eventually fall for the Ospreys.

“That’s who we are. We shoot threes and we make threes,” Mackey said. “We all have confidence, we all have confidence in each other. And to me it felt like it might have been off, but it felt like every time we needed a three, we hit a three and I thought that was big in the second half.”

In that second half, the Ospreys continued to pull away from the Governors with a basket by Davenport right after the break. As the pace just started to picked up, the turnover bug hit both teams. The teams had 27 turnovers combined for the game.

Later in the half, Austin Peay made a run to close the scoring gap. The Governors made seven from downtown and scored effectively from the bench with 26 points.

Guard/forward Beau Beech filled up the stat sheet with 14 points, eight rebounds, three assists and three steals. Photo by Michael Herrera
Guard/forward Beau Beech filled up the stat sheet with 14 points, eight rebounds, three assists and three steals.
Photo by Michael Herrera

Governor center Chris Horton contributed 28 points and a game-high 17 rebounds for the night.

There were five Ospreys in double digits led by Davenport with 18 points and eight rebounds. Beech pulled in eight rebounds as well along with 14 points. Demarcus Daniels had 10 points, seven rebounds and four blocks off the bench.

Osprey head coach Matthew Driscoll said the Ospreys held a defensive presence despite failing shots.

“I thought we played a great first half. I thought we really controlled the game,” Driscoll said. “I thought we did everything we were supposed to do, and the only thing we didn’t do was make shots. But what was really cool was, as a coach, it did not affect us on the other end and we really really defended, kept getting stops, kept getting good looks.”

Next, the Ospreys will face the Florida A&M Rattlers on Dec. 19 at the UNF Arena. This is the last match-up of their four-game home stand.

For more information or news tips, or if you see an error in this story or have any compliments or concerns, contact [email protected]

Leave a Comment
More to Discover

Comments (0)

Spinnaker intends for this area to be used to foster healthy, thought-provoking discussion. Comments are expected to adhere to our standards and to be respectful and constructive. As such, we do not permit the use of profanity, foul language, personal attacks, slurs, defamation, or the use of language that might be interpreted as libelous. Comments are reviewed and will be removed if they do not adhere to these standards. Spinnaker does not allow anonymous comments, and Spinnaker requires a valid email address. The email address will not be displayed but will be used to confirm your comments.
All UNF Spinnaker Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *