CHICAGO IL.- Owls’ fans, welcome back to basketball season!
Coming off a long off-season of anticipation and hype, The Beach Boys are back! Florida Atlantic opened the 2023-24 regular season at the Barstool Sports Invitational in Chicago, Illinois, where the Owls faced the Loyola Chicago Ramblers.
Despite traveling into enemy territory, the Owls showed no mercy in an offensive onslaught. FAU opened the game with a Johnell Davis floater for 2, and then Nick Boyd extended the Owls lead with two deep threes in the first ten minutes of play.
With under ten minutes remaining in the first half, FAU’s offense turned on the burners. Brandon Weatherspoon was automatic from three, draining two consecutive shots. Coming off the bench, Alijah Martin (ankle), drained a deep step aside three, silencing the rowdy Ramblers’ fans.
FAU’s big man, Vlad Goldin made his presence known, slamming a monster dunk down to turn the tide for the Owls. Goldin’s 19 points, 10 rebounds, 5 blocks and 4 steals performance tonight did not go unnoticed, as Barstool Sports President, Dave Portnoy sang the praises of the 7’1″ Russian all night. On air, Portnoy referred to the mighty Russian as “A true difference maker for FAU”. Portnoy’s praise didn’t end there, stating that Vlad will be “A First-Team All-American”.
At the end of the first half, FAU dominated Loyola Chicago, with a 43-30 lead. The largest scoring streak of the first half came when the Owls offense dropped unanswered 17 points on the Ramblers.
Vlad Goldin was the center of attention at the beginning of the second half. Goldin knocked down another poster dunk, set up a lethal screen and made two assists all in the first four minutes of play. The next five minutes, the Owls struggled offensively, not finding the basket, as Loyola charged their way back into the game. The late game charge was not enough for the Ramblers, as Florida Atlantic defeated Loyola Chicago 75-62.
FAU resumes their NCAA dominance as Vlad Goldin leads the Owls in scoring with a Double-Double, recording 19 points and 10 rebounds.
My Takeaways
Offensively, I liked what I saw from the Owls. The offense was high tempo all night, constantly keeping the Ramblers on their toes. I loved FAU’s offensive ball movement, as the Owls kept the ball in motion throughout their drives, leading to defensive mismatches. FAU was automatic from every part of the key, draining threes and banging layups. Vlad Goldin, Nick Boyd, Johnell Davis and Brandon Weatherspoon showed that they can score from all over the court, offensively imposing their will tonight.
Defensively, FAU did a great job keeping Loyola out of the paint. FAU big men Vlad Goldin and Giancarlo Rosado locked down on the inside, containing the Ramblers to a frantic scramble to knock points past the arc. The Owls’ defense was too much to handle for Loyola, as they caused 18 turnovers tonight.
The only negative of tonight’s game was that (unfortunately) Barstool Big Cat’s over play did not hit.
The red-hot 1-0 Owls will return home to Boca Raton to host Eastern Michigan on Tuesday November 14. Tip off is slated for 7:00 P.M.
PHOTO CREDITS: Christian Proscia
