The Florida Atlantic Owls are moving on in the American Athletic Conference Tournament, securing a hard-fought 64-59 victory over the Charlotte 49ers in the second round on Thursday afternoon.
The No. 5 seed Owls (18-14) leaned on their frontcourt to carry them past No. 13 seed Charlotte (11-22), with freshman center Matas Vokietaitis leading all scorers with 17 points on an efficient 7-for-8 shooting performance. Junior forward Baba Miller and redshirt junior forward Tre Carroll also contributed double-digit scoring efforts, helping FAU fend off a late Charlotte push.
The Owls wasted no time getting their big men involved. In the opening minutes, Miller set the tone with a cutting dunk, followed by a smooth spin move layup from Vokietaitis—his first two of eight straight points. The freshman center found early success in the paint, scoring 12 of his 17 points in the first half on 5-for-6 shooting.
Despite FAU’s strong interior play, Charlotte kept the game close. The first half saw multiple lead changes, with neither team gaining more than a seven-point advantage. The Owls closed the period on a high note, making their final three field goals, including a KyKy Tandy three-pointer—FAU’s first of the game—to take a 29-27 lead into the break.
Carroll provided a key spark off the bench in the second half, scoring eight points within his first five minutes on the floor. The Owls maintained their advantage, with Miller throwing down a powerful dunk to stretch FAU’s lead to a game-high eight points.
Charlotte refused to back down, however, closing the gap to just one after a step-back three-pointer with five minutes left. But FAU responded in crunch time, knocking down five of its last seven field goal attempts. Miller’s clutch three-pointer with just over a minute to go gave the Owls breathing room, pushing the lead back to two possessions. The team then sealed the victory at the free-throw line.
With the win, FAU advances to the AAC quarterfinals, where they will face No. 4 seed Tulane on Friday, March 14. The game will tip off at 3 p.m. ET on ESPN2 from Dickies Arena.
The Owls will look to carry their momentum forward as they continue their push for an AAC Tournament title and a potential NCAA Tournament bid.
