No. 7 FAU Looks to Continue Ascent in Clash vs. Florida Gulf Coast

THRILLING 2OT ENDING | No. 14 Florida Atlantic Owls vs No. 14 Arizona Wildcats | December 23, 2023

By reaching the Final Four in April, Florida Atlantic became the latest Cinderella story in college basketball.

By winning a double-overtime game with No. 4 Arizona last Saturday in Las Vegas, the Owls might have proved they can shed the Cinderella label for another one: a national championship contender.

The 96-95 victory over the Wildcats might be the biggest regular-season win in FAU history and powered it into the top 10 at No. 7. The Owls will try to stay in the top 10 Saturday night with a trip across the state to Fort Myers for a non-conference matchup with Florida Gulf Coast.

Playing three time zones and a couple of thousand miles from home with a pro-Arizona crowd on hand, Florida Atlantic outshot a former No. 1 team and came up with all the big plays when it really mattered. Johnell Davis pumped in 35 points, one off his career high, and grabbed nine rebounds.

“I just try to go out there and play each game the same,” he said. “When we get in between the lines, just compete.”

Making the victory even more impressive was that the Owls’ leading scorer and rebounder going into the game, 7-foot-1 Vladislav Goldin, was held to seven points and three rebounds before fouling out early in the first overtime.

“It felt like a high-level basketball game,” Florida Atlantic coach Dusty May said. “This felt like a February game with the conference championship on the line.”

Davis averages a team-best 16.3 points per game, while Goldin is contributing 14.4 points per game and shooting a Division I-best 74.2 percent from the field. Alijah Martin averages 12.8 points for the Owls, who boast the 10th-best field goal percentage at 50.8.

Meanwhile, Florida Gulf Coast (5-9) needed overtime on Dec. 22 to record a 78-75 victory over NAIA opponent Florida Memorial. Blaise Vespe supplied a game-winning 3-pointer as time expired on a shot that hit the back rim, skied above the backboard, and then dropped through the net.

“You know how many times that’s happened to us this year? It feels like that happened to us every game,” second-year Eagles coach Pat Chambers said. “I felt like this one time, the basketball gods were looking down on us and going, ‘We’re going to throw one your way.'”

Making that shot even more remarkable was that Vespe was playing in only his third game of the season and hadn’t scored prior to that sequence.

“For my first basket of the season to come like this is very special to me,” he said.

The result allowed Florida Gulf Coast to string together consecutive wins for the first time this season.

The Eagles have been led offensively by Isaiah Thompson (14.0 points per game), Princeton transfer Keeshawn Kellman (12.4 points, 6.9 rebounds), and Zach Anderson (11.4 points).

FAU owns a 4-3 lead in the series, including an 85-53 rout last season.

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    WCC to Add Grand Canyon and Seattle in 2025

    WCC adding Seattle U and Grand Canyon University

    WCC adding Seattle U and Grand Canyon University

    Seattle and Grand Canyon will be leaving the Western Athletic Conference and moving to the West Coast Conference starting July 2025.

    The nine current members of the conference are private universities with a religious affiliation. Seattle is a Jesuit institution, while Grand Canyon, situated in Phoenix, is a Christian college.

    Grand Canyon’s basketball achievements were a significant factor in attracting WCC commissioner Stu Jackson. The team has participated in the last two NCAA Tournaments and three of the previous four under the leadership of coach Bryce Drew.

    As the 12th-seeded Antelopes defeated fifth-seeded Saint Mary’s before losing to Alabama in the tournament this season.

    Saint Mary’s is currently a member of the West Coast Conference.

    The WCC, while also integrating Oregon State and Washington State this autumn (excluding football), will expand from 11 to 13 members by the 2025-26 season.

    The future beyond 2026 looks uncertain, with Oregon State and Washington State appearing unlikely to continue with the WCC.

    The former Pac-12 schools are under a two-year contract, expiring on June 30, 2026. Sources from CBS Sports suggest that the odds of the two Pacific Northwest institutions staying are slim, with a move to the Mountain West or a new conference formation being more probable.

    Following the departures of Sam Houston and New Mexico State last year, Seattle and Grand Canyon’s exit from the WAC will reduce the conference’s membership to just eight by July 2025.

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    Ex-Cal State Fullerton G Max Jones Commits to Kansas State

    Kansas State adds athletic wing in left-handed shooter Max Jones

    Kansas State adds athletic wing in left-handed shooter Max Jones

    Former guard of Cal State Fullerton Max Jones has made a decision to join Kansas State for his upcoming collegiate season, according to reports.

    Notable alternatives that Jones purportedly pondered were New Mexico, Texas A&M, Mississippi State, Florida Atlantic, and Loyola Chicago.

    During the previous season with the Titans, Jones maintained an average of 15.3 points and 3.0 rebounds across 24 games, in which he started 21. He secured the second-highest scoring position within the team, alongside being the second in 3-pointers with 42 baskets and 41 steals.

    In the season prior, Jones held an average of 12.5 points and 4.0 rebounds in 32 games, amassing 34 three-pointers and 30 steals.

    Before making his way to Cal State Fullerton post the 2021-22 season, Jones spent two years at Division II Tampa, where he managed to achieve an average of 21.9 points across 21 games during his sophomore year with the Spartans.

    In the recent offseason, Kansas State acquired Dug McDaniel, a former player from Michigan recognized as one of the premier point guards available in this year’s transfer portal.

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    Stanford Names Basketball Court in Honor of Tara VanDerveer

    View From The Top with Tara VanDerveer, Former Coach of Stanford Women’s Basketball

    View From The Top with Tara VanDerveer, Former Coach of Stanford Women’s Basketball

    Tara VanDerveer’s legacy at Stanford will now be visibly acknowledged, with the school revealing on Thursday that the basketball arena’s floor will bear the name of the esteemed Hall of Fame coach.

    At the age of 70, VanDerveer stepped down following her 38th season at the helm of the Cardinal.

    She steered Stanford to 14 Final Fours and secured three national championships (1990, 1992, 2021). VanDerveer embarked on her coaching journey at Idaho (1978-80) and later coached at Ohio State (1980-85).

    In January, she surpassed Mike Krzyzewski to clinch the title of the most successful college basketball coach in history, across both men’s and women’s teams. VanDerveer concluded with a remarkable 1,216-271 record, boasting a 1,064-220 tally with the Cardinal.

    Alongside the unveiling of the Tara VanDerveer Court at Maples Pavilion this November, Stanford also established an endowed position in women’s basketball for an assistant coach in VanDerveer’s honor.

    VanDerveer said in a statement, “This endowment will go a long way to strengthening the future of Stanford women’s basketball. I have many wonderful memories of leading the women’s basketball program at Maples Pavilion.”

    “It’s an honor, and a little surreal, to know that my name will be linked to both in these ways, and I look forward to celebrating with all our fans this fall.”

    Last month, Stanford appointed Kate Paye, one of VanDerveer’s longtime assistant coaches who played for the Cardinal from 1991-95 and began coaching under VanDerveer in 2007, as the new head coach.

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