What: Field Of 68 Tournament- FAU vs Charleston, FAU vs Liberty
When: Friday, November 15th, 7:00 PM (Charleston), Saturday November 16th, 7:00 Pm (Liberty)
Where: TD Arena
Series: Charleston leads FAU 9-1, FAU leads Liberty 2-1
TV: Field of 68 Youtube
Radio: Fox 640
Live Stats: Stats Broadcast
Line: Charleston -1.5, Liberty N/A
FAU at a Glance
Offense – 96.7 PPG, 49% FG, 41% 3PT
Defense – 71 PPGA, 41% FGA, 38% 3PTA
Rebounding – 42 RPG Owls, 32 RPG Opponents
FAU Notes
FAU heads into the Field of 68 tournament off their first loss of the season and will face back to back matchups against Liberty and Charleston on Friday and Saturday night.
There were positives and negatives for the Owls in their first loss of the season, as they had the offensive firepower to fight back and forth with UCF, however in the end their defense was not up to par enough to pull out the win from the knights. John Jakus acknowledged this in his post game press conference, however his trust remains in his squad and they will look to make necessary adjustments in a short time before facing off against a strong Charleston squad Friday night.
As for the good so far for FAU, the Owls have been able to get scoring in a variety of ways, with 8 players averaging 9 points or more per game, getting 41% 3 point shooting as a squad, while also getting solid contributions down low. What had really helped FAU this season is their ability to have no drop-off when turning to the bench, as Kaleb Glenn currently leads the Owls in scoring with 14.7 points per game, while Nico Moretti is 4th in scoring, averaging 11.7 points and 5 assists per game.
Where FAU struggled against UCF was against the 3 point shot, as the Knights shot over 50% and were taking advantage of FAU double teams by finding open shooters. Although Liberty and Charleston won’t have the size that Moustapha Thiem brought, which drew the double teams, they have the shooting to potentially hurt the Owls and it will be important for them to shore up perimeter defense in the limited time they had.
FAU will head into the matchup with Charleston on Friday well rested and having made whatever adjustments they see fit and then will follow that one up with Liberty on Saturday. Charleston is the tougher opponent and it’s better that’s the game that comes with rest, however Liberty plays high intensity defense and they will attempt to tire out FAU on the second half of the back to back. With that in mind, it’s important FAU comes out hot early in both matchups which would prevent having to attempt an uphill climb to comeback.
Against Charleston, FAU will need their shooters to be clicking as early into the game as possible, as Charleston has the size to limit Baba Miller and Matas Vokietaitis, however at Guard their size is limited and could play into FAU’s favor. This could be a matchup where Ken Evans Jr shines as if FAU opts to roll small and draws Ante Brzovic out of the paint, a bigger guard like Evans could have his way on drives to the rim.
For Liberty, FAU has the size to dominate this matchup, as they don’t have any players currently in their rotation 6 ’10 or taller. That could create opportunities for Matas Vokietaitis and Baba Miller, however also Owls guards on drives to the rim and if FAU capitalizes on their size in this one on both ends of the court, while also hitting their 3’s at a solid rate, they should have more than enough to handle Liberty.
Ultimately in this tournament, FAU needs to bounce back defensively from their performance against UCF and Charleston will be a tough opponent to do that against off the rip, as they bring size and shooting that makes them a similar team to FAU. However, FAU has a bit more size at guard, and more versatility all around, and if the Owls can limit open looks, they have the firepower to out-pace Charleston.
Charleston at a Glance
Offense – 88 PPG, 50% FG, 36% 3PT
Defense – 75 PPGA, 38% FGA, 23% 3PTA
Rebounding – 39 RPG Charleston, 32 RPG Opponents
Charleston Notes
Charleston checks into this matchup at 2-0 and they have looked like the strong mid-major they have developed to be in previous years now led by 1st year head Coach Chris Mack. The Cougars have won both of their games by double figures, defeating Southern Illinois 90-80 and USF 86-71 and they have been led by longtime Cougar Ante Brzovic.
The 3rd year 6 ’10 Center has averaged 30.5 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists through 2 games and he has been able to get it done down low, however also on the perimeter as he’s converted 2 of his 4 attempts. Mack getting him to stay this past offseason was huge for this squad and early on he has looked improved from when the Owls saw him a year ago where he finished 6 of 15 from the field with 12 points. Charleston is averaging an offensive rebound on 22.8% of possessions this season and Brzovic has been a big part of that showing a willingness to do the dirty work to help his team succeed.
The big improver for the Cougar this year has been point guard CJ Fulton, as he’s averaged 16.5 points and 6.5 assists so far, up from 4.1 points & assists per game a year ago. His facilitation of the offense remains at a high level, however his scoring improving has added a new threat to this offense. He has combined with Delaware State transfer Deywilk Tavares who has averaged 14.5 PPG 4.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists in more of a traditional 2-gaurd role and both scoring at a high level makes this offense very dangerous.
Defensively, Charleston has been fairly sound so far this season and one of their biggest strengths could prove to be a problem for FAU, as they’ve limited teams to 23.4% from 3. An interesting statistic for the cougars defense that plays into FAU’s favor is they’re averaging the quickest defensive possession allowed in the country at 13.2 seconds, which is 1 second faster than FAU’s up-tempo offense that averages an offensive possession of 14.4 seconds.
Charleston has the size and shooting to stay in this matchup offensively and have limited teams from 3, which could potentially hurt FAU’s offense in this one. If they’re able to slow down FAU’s 3 point game, while also getting Brzovic hot offensively they could bring problems to FAU in this one, also backed by a raucous home atmosphere. On the other end, FAU will need to limit Brzovic, while finding ways to generate open looks from 3, if they can do those 2 things, that would put them in a good position.
Liberty at a glance
Offense – 76 PPG, 47% FG, 34% 3PT
Defense – 57 PPGA, 39% FGA, 32% 3PTA
Rebounding – 33 RPG Charleston, 32 RPG Opponents
Liberty Notes
Liberty heads into the tournament at 3-0 and their stout defense has played a big part in that, not allowing more than 64 points in any game. Led by Veteran Coach Ritchie McKay, Liberty isn’t going to blow anyone away athletically, however they play sound on both ends of the court and if their defense gets to you as an offense, they can pull out ball games with their slow pace of play,
They’ve done that so far, led by Kaden Metheny offensively, as the 5’10 G has averaged 15.5 PPG, shooting 57% from 3 combining with Jayvon Maughmer who’s chipped in 10.7 PPG to be the only Flames averaging double figures. Although they don’t score at a high rate averaging the 310th fastest offense at 18.7 seconds per possesion, they are efficient in the opportunities they do get, converting at a 39% rate from 3 and 60.3% from 2 which are both top 50 in the nation.
Defensively, they have also been really sound this season at defending the 3 point shot, limiting teams to 24.1% from 3, and they have been tested to the tune of 26 attempts per game against them. Although they don’t have a rotational player above 6’10, they clean up the glass effectively only allowing an offensive rebound 26.5% of the time which is 112th in the country.
Their size is going to be a disadvantage against FAU, as Owen Aquino and Isaiah Ihnen are 6 ‘8 and 6’ 9 respectively and account for a majority of the Flames size in their rotation. Defensively, they will have to account for Baba Miller and Mantas Vokietaitis, 2 FAU big-men who can hurt them from down low and from the perimeter.
With a lack of size, Liberty will have to look to limit FAU on the perimeter, which they have been successful at doing against opponents this season. If they can do that, they will be in a good position, however on the other end they will have to find ways to score more than they have so far, as even if FAU is limited from 3 they will find other ways to score and if Liberty fails to score more than 70, they won’t have a good chance in this game.