Florida Atlantic adjusting to new reality ahead of stretch run
Florida Atlantic is learning how to handle expectations in real time.
On Thursday, that meant a 76-73 road loss to the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
The No. 20 Owls led by seven at the half, but the Blazers flipped the script in the second half to win in overtime. Leading 73-70 with just over 30 seconds remaining, UAB guard Efrem Johnson drilled a triple from way downtown.
That and a Johnell Davis missed 3-pointer on the final possession was enough for the Blazers (15-8, 7-3 in the American Athletic Conference) to get the job done.
"They were physical, I thought they played very determined basketball and they deserved to win," FAU head coach Dusty May told reporters after the game.
Coming into the season, it was obvious that the Owls (18-5, 8-2) would be hard-pressed to match the heights they reached last season.
The program, which had only played at the Division I level since 1993, won 35 games, captured the Conference USA regular-season and tournament titles and reached its first Final Four.
If not for a dramatic buzzer-beater by San Diego State’s Lamont Butler, the Owls would have faced UConn for the national title.
Sure, FAU brought back its core, including Davis, Alijah Martin and 7-foot-1 center Vladislav Goldin. And May, the new darling of men’s college coaching, dismissed any immediate speculation about him leaving FAU by signing a 10-year contract extension in April.
But the Owls also joined a new league, departing Conference USA in favor of the new-look AAC. That alone is a challenging transition, but when you’re the preseason No. 10 team in the country and coming off a Final Four appearance, the target that inevitably appears on your back makes it even harder.
Add in a difficult non-conference slate — which saw FAU knock off the likes of Butler, Texas A&M, Virginia Tech and Arizona and lose to Bryant, Illinois and Florida Gulf Coast — and this was never meant to be a cakewalk to March.
It certainly hasn’t been. The Owls already have more losses (five) than they had all of last season (four), the product of a tougher schedule and FAU now being an opponent that teams circle on their respective calendars.
But a single loss, particularly one on the road to a UAB bunch that boasts five players averaging double-figure scoring totals, is not the end of the world. The Owls are just a game back of South Florida for first in the conference, and face the Bulls on the road a week from Sunday.
Winning the double AAC title is still attainable, an accomplishment that could help the Owls secure a top-four seed — ESPN’s latest bracketology projections have FAU penciled in as a No. 5 seed.
But the Owls aren’t focused on the big picture, at least not according to their head coach. They’re taking things game-by-game, with Sunday’s road matchup against Wichita State serving as the next step on their journey.
"It’s life on the road," May said. "We’ll have to figure out a way to clean up a few things and bring our best game, our A-effort against the Shockers."
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