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Saturday, November 16
Charleston, S.C.
6:00 PM ET
Liberty University
3-1,0-0CUSA
74
vs
77
Florida Atlantic
3-2,0-0AAC
1
2
OT 1
F
Liberty
42
25
7
74
Fla. Atlantic
39
28
10
77
FAU Edges Liberty 77-74 in OT at Field of 68 Tip-Off
11/16/2024 10:05:00 PM | Men's Basketball
CHARLESTON, S.C. – Florida Atlantic edged Liberty 77-74 in overtime on Saturday evening at the Field of 68 Media Network Tip-Off event, held at Charleston's TD Arena.
This is the Flames' first loss of the 2024-25 season. Liberty drops to 3-1 after the narrow setback. FAU improves to 3-2 on the year and snaps a two-game losing skid. The Owls finish out the weekend with a 1-1 mark after falling 119-116 in double overtime against host Charleston last night.
Liberty held FAU, who entered the game averaging 101.5 points per game (No. 5 in nation), over 24 points below its season average in a 45-minute game (regulation plus overtime).
Liberty Individuals: Kaden Metheny 19 points, 4 rebounds; Owen Aquino 14 points, 8 rebounds, 3 steals; Taelon Peter 13 points, 3-6 3FG, 4 rebounds, 2 steals; Zach Cleveland 11 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals, 1 block
Florida Atlantic Individuals: Matas Vokietaitis 17 points, 7-9 FG, 6 rebounds; Leland Walker 16 points, 7-11 FG, Kaleb Glenn 12 points, 5 rebounds; Niccolo Moretti 12 points, 4-6 FG
Key Team Stats: Tonight's back-and-forth game featured 16 lead changes and six ties. The Flames led for 31:42 of the 45 minutes, and the Owls led for 6:55. The game was tied for 6:23. Liberty held the biggest lead of the game, 22-10, with 12:38 to play in the opening half. Liberty shot 42.6 percent (26-of-51) for the game. The Flames shot 50 percent (13-of-26) in the first half and overtime (3-of-6) but only 34.5 percent (10-of-29) in the second half. FAU shot 50.8 percent (30-of-59) for the game. Liberty struggled from the foul line, making only 57.1 percent (12-of-21) of its shots from the charity stripe. FAU was 75 percent (9-of-12) from the free throw line.
The Flames outrebounded the Owls 36-34 and held edges in assists (17-10) and second chance points (7-2). Liberty also capitalized off 13 FAU turnovers with 21 points. The Owls only scored nine points on 12 Flames turnovers. FAU held advantages in points in the paint (36-32), fast break points (13-7) and bench points (34-25).
Turning Point
Liberty edged ahead 67-66 with 31 seconds left in regulation following an acrobatic reverse layup from Zach Cleveland. On the next trip down the court, the Owls' Matas Vokietaitis split a pair of free throws to tie the game, giving Liberty the ball for the final possession in regulation. On that possession, Kaden Metheny got an open look with four seconds left, but his three-pointer did not fall.
A back-and-forth overtime session saw FAU take a 75-74 lead with 1:02 left on a Kaleb Glenn jumper. Liberty's next trip down resulted in a missed three-pointer from Zach Cleveland. After Florida Atlantic's Niccolo Morreti knocked down two free throws to extend the lead to 77-74 with 19 seconds left, Liberty turned the ball over with 11 ticks remaining. On the ensuing inbounds play, FAU turned it over, giving the Flames a final chance to tie it up and send it to double overtime. Kaden Metheny's triple rattled in and out, and the ensuing loose ball ended the game.
Key Stats & Notes
The Flames will close out the weekend with a game against Charleston (3-0) on Sunday at TD Arena. Tip time is 4 p.m. in what is the final game of the second year of the Field of 68 Media Network Tip-Off event.
This will be the fourth all-time meeting between the Flames and Cougars. Last year, Charleston bested Liberty 76-67 at the Field of 68 Tip-Off event in Boca Raton, Fla.
This is the Flames' first loss of the 2024-25 season. Liberty drops to 3-1 after the narrow setback. FAU improves to 3-2 on the year and snaps a two-game losing skid. The Owls finish out the weekend with a 1-1 mark after falling 119-116 in double overtime against host Charleston last night.
Liberty held FAU, who entered the game averaging 101.5 points per game (No. 5 in nation), over 24 points below its season average in a 45-minute game (regulation plus overtime).
Liberty Individuals: Kaden Metheny 19 points, 4 rebounds; Owen Aquino 14 points, 8 rebounds, 3 steals; Taelon Peter 13 points, 3-6 3FG, 4 rebounds, 2 steals; Zach Cleveland 11 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals, 1 block
Florida Atlantic Individuals: Matas Vokietaitis 17 points, 7-9 FG, 6 rebounds; Leland Walker 16 points, 7-11 FG, Kaleb Glenn 12 points, 5 rebounds; Niccolo Moretti 12 points, 4-6 FG
Key Team Stats: Tonight's back-and-forth game featured 16 lead changes and six ties. The Flames led for 31:42 of the 45 minutes, and the Owls led for 6:55. The game was tied for 6:23. Liberty held the biggest lead of the game, 22-10, with 12:38 to play in the opening half. Liberty shot 42.6 percent (26-of-51) for the game. The Flames shot 50 percent (13-of-26) in the first half and overtime (3-of-6) but only 34.5 percent (10-of-29) in the second half. FAU shot 50.8 percent (30-of-59) for the game. Liberty struggled from the foul line, making only 57.1 percent (12-of-21) of its shots from the charity stripe. FAU was 75 percent (9-of-12) from the free throw line.
The Flames outrebounded the Owls 36-34 and held edges in assists (17-10) and second chance points (7-2). Liberty also capitalized off 13 FAU turnovers with 21 points. The Owls only scored nine points on 12 Flames turnovers. FAU held advantages in points in the paint (36-32), fast break points (13-7) and bench points (34-25).
Turning Point
Liberty edged ahead 67-66 with 31 seconds left in regulation following an acrobatic reverse layup from Zach Cleveland. On the next trip down the court, the Owls' Matas Vokietaitis split a pair of free throws to tie the game, giving Liberty the ball for the final possession in regulation. On that possession, Kaden Metheny got an open look with four seconds left, but his three-pointer did not fall.
A back-and-forth overtime session saw FAU take a 75-74 lead with 1:02 left on a Kaleb Glenn jumper. Liberty's next trip down resulted in a missed three-pointer from Zach Cleveland. After Florida Atlantic's Niccolo Morreti knocked down two free throws to extend the lead to 77-74 with 19 seconds left, Liberty turned the ball over with 11 ticks remaining. On the ensuing inbounds play, FAU turned it over, giving the Flames a final chance to tie it up and send it to double overtime. Kaden Metheny's triple rattled in and out, and the ensuing loose ball ended the game.
Key Stats & Notes
- Kaden Metheny scored a game-high 19 points tonight. The guard has scored in double figures 28 times in 35 games as a Flame. Metheny is the team's leading scorer, averaging 16.7 ppg.
- Forwards Zach Cleveland and Owen Aquino both filled up the stat sheet for the Flames. Cleveland had 11 points, a game-high eight rebounds and game-best seven assists. Aquino delivered 14 points, eight rebounds, three steals, an assist and a block.
- This was Liberty's first overtime game this season. The Flames were 0-2 in overtime last season, falling to Louisiana Tech and New Mexico State.
- Liberty falls to 0-3 all-time at the Field of 68 Media Network Tip-Off event.
- Colin Porter finished with six assists, his third straight game with five or more assists.
- Taelon Peter scored 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting, his highest scoring output as a Flame.
- Isaiah Ihnen chipped in six points, five boards and two steals in 16:38 of action off the bench. Zander Yates was a perfect 2-of-2 from three-point territory for six points in only 5:16 of action.
The Flames will close out the weekend with a game against Charleston (3-0) on Sunday at TD Arena. Tip time is 4 p.m. in what is the final game of the second year of the Field of 68 Media Network Tip-Off event.
This will be the fourth all-time meeting between the Flames and Cougars. Last year, Charleston bested Liberty 76-67 at the Field of 68 Tip-Off event in Boca Raton, Fla.
Team Stats
Lib
FAU
FG%
.426
.508
3FG%
.294
.381
FT%
.571
.750
RB
36
34
TO
12
13
STL
11
5
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
19
FGM
5
3FGM
4
FTM
5
Pts
14
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Pts
11
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's Basketball
F
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