Roanoke

No. 19 Florida Atlantic up next for Virginia Tech men

C.Nguyen3 months ago

KISSIMMEE, Fla. — The Florida Atlantic men's basketball team brought back all but one player from the squad that reached the Final Four last season.

But that doesn't mean the 19th-ranked Owls, who will play Virginia Tech on Sunday in the title game of the ESPN Events Invitational, are a carbon copy of last year's team.

"Even though we have the same team back, a lot of roles are growing and evolving and we're still figuring ourselves out as a group," FAU coach Dusty May said Friday after his team's semifinal win at the ESPN Wide World of Sports complex.

"We are not picking up on April 2nd right now. It's November and we've got to go through some things to become the best team we can be."

Florida Atlantic (4-1) stumbled on Nov. 18, shooting just 26.2% from the field in a 60-51 home loss to Bryant.

But the Owls have gone 2-0 since that defeat. They beat Butler 91-86 in the first round of this tournament Thursday and defeated 12th-ranked Texas A&M 96-89 in a semifinal Friday.

"They showed up the next day [after losing to Bryant] with their hard hats on, ready to learn, grown and improve," May said. "Immediately after the game, our guys were talking about how that loss wasn't going to define us.

"We're going to lose some games. Hopefully not, but Vegas is going to say we're going to lose some games this year. So we just can't lose that way again. If we lose, it's got to be in a different way."

American Athletic Conference newcomer Florida Atlantic has been without two injured players in this tournament. Guard Nick Boyd (10.7 ppg this year), a returning starter who led the team in assists last season, and forward Giancarlo Rosado (9.0 ppg) have not played since the loss to Bryant.

"The guys aren't far off [from returning]," May said.

Even without Boyd and Rosado, FAU still had six players score in double figures Friday.

"We have some veteran guards that know how to play this game at a high level. They know where to look. They know who's open," May said.

The Owls are led by Vladislav Goldin, a 7-foot-1, 240-pound center who averages 14.8 points and 6.8 rebounds. Guard Johnell Davis averages 14.2 points and 6.4 rebounds, while guard Alijah Martin averages 11.6 points. Davis and Martin were named the American Athletic Conference co-preseason players of the year.

Davis had 26 points and six 3-pointers in Friday's win over Texas A&M, while Martin had 25 points and five 3-pointers. Goldin added 10 points and three blocks.

"In this era, it's very, very tough to share the spotlight like our guys do," May said.

FAU won despite being outrebounded 41-23 by the Aggies.

"We're normally an excellent rebounding team," May said. "Texas A&M, credit to them — their relentless approach on the glass was impressive. And so ... we had to find different ways to win."

The Owls led Texas A&M just 46-44 at halftime. But A&M standout Henry Coleman III did not play in the second half because of an ankle injury, while Tech-turned-A&M standout Tyrece Radford played only three minutes in the second half because of a breathing issue.

Tech coach Mike Young's Hokies (5-1) are coming off a 71-62 win over Iowa State on Friday.

Had the Hokies lost Friday, they would have faced Buzz Williams and Texas A&M in the third-place game Sunday.

Williams, who steered Tech for five seasons before leaving for the A&M coaching job in 2019, said he has "only good memories" of his years in Blacksburg.

"It was an incredible five years," Williams said Friday. "Whit Babcock is arguably the best A.D. in the country. Dr. [Tim] Sands was so supportive of what we did. I don't think there's a better community to raise children in than Blacksburg.

"I remember going 2-16 [in ACC play]. I remember being in the Sweet 16, running the play we ran with 1.6 seconds for Ahmed [Hill] on the layup miss.

"I still talk to so many people — Coach [Frank] Beamer, Coach Beamer's son [Shane], Coach [John] Ballein.

"I went to the [ESPN Events Invitational] welcome dinner and sat next to Coach Young. He is a way better coach than I am. He is right where he should be. They've won the league. They'll go to the tournament every year. Their style of play is incredibly hard to prepare for — obviously I just watch them because I'm a fan of his and Virginia Tech.

"My five years there, I feel like we did OK. A lot of kids graduated. A lot of good people, a lot of good players. I have great relationships — [Tech assistant director for equipment services] Bruce Garnes [was] waiting as soon as we showed up. [Tech assistant athletic director David Jackson] is one of my closest friends."

Mark Berman (540) 981-3125