The opening day of the 2020 Air Force Reserve C-USA Men’s Basketball Championship presented by Baylor Scott & White Sports Performance Center at The Star in Frisco is in the books. (9) Florida Atlantic finished on an 18-6 run to defeat defending tournament champion and (8) Old Dominion, 66-56 in the lid-lifter. (5) FIU Shot 64% from the field in the second half in disposing of (12) Rice, 85-76. A balanced UAB attack led the Blazers past UTSA, 74-69. The final game of the day saw Taveion Kinsey score 26 points to lead (6) Marshall to an 86-78 victory over (11) UTEP.
Schedule/Results/Watch Links
Championship Central
First Round Game 1
(9) Florida Atlantic 66, (8) Old Dominion 56
Florida Atlantic closed the game on an 18-6 run to defeat the defending tournament champion Old Dominion, 66-56, to begin the 2020 Air Force Reserve C-USA Men’s Basketball Championship presented by Baylor Scott & White Sports Performance Center at The Star. It marked the first non play-in win for the Owls in a conference championship since 2008 and just their second-ever victory in the C-USA Championship.
With Old Dominion holding a 50-48 lead with 8:09 to play, FAU freshman D.J. Robertson hit a layup to tie the game at 50-50, the seventh tie of the game. That began a 12-0 Owls run over the next five+ minutes that gave them a 60-50 lead. Jailyn Ingram and Richardson Maitre each had a three-pointer and a field goal during the key run.
Ingram scored a game and season-high 22 points, while Richardson set a new career best with 21. Ingram was 4-of-5 from three-point range and added seven rebounds. Richardson hit on 5-of-8 from behind the arc, a new career-best.
2019 C-USA Tournament MVP led Old Dominion (13-19) with 15 points. Joe Reece registered his first career double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds, while Aaron Carver pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds.
Florida Atlantic (17-15) advances to play top-seeded North Texas at 6 p.m. CT on Thursday in the first quarterfinal. The Mean Green won the regular season meeting with the Owls, 81-58, on January 11 in Denton.
First Round Game 2
(5) FIU 85, (12) Rice 76
No. 5 seed FIU mounted a seven-point lead at halftime and shot 64 percent from the field in the second half to drive past No. 12 seed Rice, 85-76 in Wednesday’s first round action.
C-USA Defensive Player of the Year Osasumwen Osaghae turned in a complete effort with 17 points on 8-of-11 field goals, eight rebounds, six blocks and two steals. FIU (19-13), the nation’s top blocking unit, totaled nine stuffs to Rice’s (15-17) one. Antonio Daye, Jr., manufactured 20 points and a game-high eight assists. Trejon Jacob connected on 3-of-4 3-pointers to lead the FIU offense with 21 points on the night.
Rice’s Drew Peterson led all scorers with 24, courtesy of a 50 percent clip from the floor (7-14), and sprinkled in six boards and four assists. Robert Martin collected eight rebounds and a pair of steals. All seven of Ako Adams' shot attempts were from 3-point land, draining four to become the third Owl in double figures.
Peterson’s layup at the 1:44 mark of the first half tied the game 28-all before FIU went on a 7-0 run to earn the advantage heading into the break. A Devon Andrews dunk made a statement at the start of the second frame as FIU would never surrender the lead. Rice knotted the contest twice midway, 48-48 with 11:33 to play, before the Panthers manufactured a lead that grew as large as 13.
FIU advances to face No. 4 seed Charlotte at 6:30 p.m. CT in Thursday’s quarterfinals. Coverage of the Court B action can be found on Facebook.
First Round Game 3
(7) UAB 74, (10) UTSA 69
Tavin Lovan scored 17 points, grabbed eight rebounds and dished out six assists to lead UAB to a 74-69 win over UTSA in the 2020 Air Force Reserve C-USA Men’s Basketball Championship presented by Baylor Scott & White Sports Performance Center at The Star. UAB has now won its first game at the C-USA Championship each of the last four years.
Tovan led a balanced Blazers attack that saw Tyreek Scott-Grayson score 14 points and Antonio Ralat add 11. All five UAB starters pulled down at least five rebounds on the night.
UAB (19-13) was strong at the foul line down the stretch, making their final eight free throw attempts over the final 2:18. That accounted for eight of the team’s final 11 points in the five-point victory.
Keaton Wallace was 8-of-12 from the field in the first half, going to the break with 22 of UTSA’s 38 points. He finished the game with 28 points, including eight three-point field goals made. Only player in C-USA Championship history has made more three-pointers in a game than Wallace.
Jhivvan Jackson scored 12 points for the Roadrunners and Jacob Germany added 10. Brian Frohnen led all rebounders with 11, his sixth double-digit board game this season for the school’s all-time leading rebounder.
UAB advances to play second-seeded WKU at 8:30 p.m. CT on Thursday in the first quarterfinal. The Blazers won the only regular season meeting with the Hilltoppers back on January 9, 72-62.
First Round Game 4
(6) Marshall 86, (11) UTEP 78
No. 6 seed Marshall routed No. 11 UTEP, 86-78 Wednesday night to close out the first round. The win marked the sixth-straight year a No. 6 seed has defeated a No. 11 seed and became the fifth victory in a row for the Thundering Herd in a C-USA Championship.
Marshall’s Taevion Kinsey posted a game-high 26 points on 10-of-19 shots from the floor, including a 6-for-7 performance at the free throw line. He also chipped in eight rebounds and a trio of steals. Andrew Taylor registered 15 points, five assists and five caroms in the effort.
Bryson Williams went 11-for-23 from the field to amass 25 points, falling a rebound shy of a double-double. Jordan Lathon reached the feat with 22 points and 11 rebounds, and also inked six assists and two blocks for the Miners.
Marshall will face No. 3 seed Louisiana Tech at 9 p.m. CT Thursday on Court B. The contest will be broadcast on Facebook. Last time out, the Thundering Herd topped the Bulldogs, 83-79 in overtime Feb. 8 in Huntington.