North Florida Ospreys
Atlantic Sun (22-11, 10-4)
For a while it looked like North Florida was going to absolutely dominate the Atlantic Sun. They were scoring a ton of points and began A-Sun play with a 7-0 record. But then the offense began to sputter a little bit and the Ospreys lost four in a row to start the month of the February. Fortunately, UNF was able to get back on track and drop 107 points on NJIT and win their final three regular season games to take home the outright Atlantic Sun regular season title.
Big Wins: 11/13 vs Illinois (93-81), 12/16 Austin Peay (80-70), 1/2 at Eastern Michigan (82-77)
Bad Losses: 2/1 Stetson (82-86), 2/11 at Kennesaw State (91-101), 2/13 at Lipscomb (87-94)
Coach: Matthew Driscoll
Why They Can Surprise:
There are only a handful of teams in the country that score more points per game than Coach Matthew Driscoll’s Ospreys squad. And this team does it with three-pointers. Every single player in the regular seven man rotation is a threat to knock down the long ball and five players average double digits in the scoring column. Point guard Dallas Moore is the most well-rounded of the group, averaging 19.7 points and 6.1 assists. He is a consistent three-point shooter, but he is the guard who will attack the basket effectively as well. Beau Beech, a big 6-9 wing, attacks the rim too. He also shoots 42.7 percent from long range and has 96 three-pointers made heading into the postseason. Yet, it is Trent Mackey who is the team’s most prolific and efficient three-point shooter. Demarcus Daniels provides a nice offensive spark off of the bench and Nick Malonga is the one player on the team who has struggled with his shot this year. But Malonga is a good glue guy. Chris Davenport, a 6-8 junior, is a pretty good shooter too and perhaps even more impressively, is a great passer out of the post. Aaron Bodager provides most of the frontcourt depth.
Why They Can Disappoint:
And it is in the frontcourt where this team can be overpowered by tougher teams in the postseason. The defense is going to give up a lot of points and want to simply outscore the competition. But the defense does not force enough turnovers and they will get beat on the glass on a regular basis. Davenport is a solid rebounder and he and the athletic Daniels can block some shots, but teams with a couple good frontcourt players are going to have an easy time getting into the paint and getting clean looks at the basket. And even if those looks are not clean and they miss, it is quite likely that UNF will give up an offensive rebound. But if North Florida is knocking down three’s, they can keep it close with anybody and, at the least, will provide an exciting high scoring contest.
Probable Starters:
Dallas Moore, Junior, Guard, 19.7 ppg, 6.1 apg
Trent Mackey, Senior, Guard, 12.1 ppg, 1.8 apg
Nick Malonga, Sophomore, Guard, 4.4 ppg
Beau Beech, Senior, Forward, 15.4 ppg, 1.9 apg, 6.4 rpg
Chris Davenport, Junior, Forward, 12.2 ppg, 3.2 apg, 7.3 rpg, 1.9 bpg
Key Roleplayers:
Aaron Bodager, Junior, Guard, 6.5 ppg, 1.2 apg
Demarcus Daniels, Senior, Forward, 12.6 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 2.2 bpg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 84.8 (4th in nation, 1st in conference)
Scoring Defense: 79.0 (319, 6)
Field-Goal Percentage: 48.6 (17, 1)
Field-Goal Defense: 46.2 (317, 6)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 12.2 (1, 1)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 41.1 (8, 1)
Free-Throw Percentage: 72.5 (70, 2)
Rebound Margin: -4.3 (305, 7)
Assists Per Game: 16.6 (24, 2)
Turnovers Per Game: 11.0 (32, 1)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
2015 NCAA First Round loss to Robert Morris
*all team stats through 3/6
