2022–23 Florida Atlantic Owls men's basketball team

The 2022–23 Florida Atlantic Owls men's basketball team represented Florida Atlantic University in the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Owls were led by fifth-year head coach Dusty May and played their home games at Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena in Boca Raton, Florida as members of Conference USA. The Owls finished the season 35–4, 18–2 in C-USA play to win the regular season championship. They defeated Western Kentucky, Middle Tennessee, and UAB to win the C-USA tournament championship. As a result, they received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 9 seed in the East region. They defeated Memphis in the first round which marked the school's first NCAA tournament win. They then defeated Fairleigh Dickinson to advance to the Sweet Sixteen. The Owls defeated Tennessee and Kansas State to advance to the school's first Final Four. This made FAU the first men's team since George Mason in 2006 to reach the Final Four in the same season that it earned its first NCAA tournament win.[1] In the Final Four, they lost to San Diego State.

2022–23 Florida Atlantic Owls men's basketball
Conference USA regular season and tournament champions
Paradise Invitational champions
NCAA tournament, Final Four
ConferenceConference USA
Ranking
CoachesNo. 5
APNo. 25
Record35–4 (18–2 C-USA)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Kyle Church
  • Todd Abernethy
  • Drew Williamson
Home arenaEleanor R. Baldwin Arena
Seasons
2022–23 Conference USA men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 25 Florida Atlantic 18 2   .900 35 4   .897
North Texas 16 4   .800 31 7   .816
UAB 14 6   .700 29 10   .744
Middle Tennessee 11 9   .550 19 14   .576
Charlotte 9 11   .450 22 14   .611
Rice 8 12   .400 19 16   .543
FIU 8 12   .400 14 18   .438
Western Kentucky 8 12   .400 17 16   .515
UTEP 7 13   .350 14 18   .438
Louisiana Tech 7 13   .350 15 18   .455
UTSA 4 16   .200 10 22   .313
2023 C-USA tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

On January 16, 2023, the Owls were ranked in the AP poll for the first time in program history.[2][3]

On October 21, 2021, Florida Atlantic accepted an invitation to join the American Athletic Conference[4] and became a full-member on July 1, 2023.[5] As a result, this season was the program's last as a member of Conference USA.[6]

Previous season

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The Owls finished the 2021-22 season 19–15, 11–7 in C-USA play to finish in third place in the East Division. They defeated Southern Miss in the second round of the C-USA tournament before losing to UAB in the quarterfinals. The Owls received an invitation to the College Basketball Invitational, where they lost to Northern Colorado in the first round.

Offseason

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Departures

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason for departure
Madiaw Niang 1 F 6'9" 230 Senior Dakar, Senegal Graduate transferred to Radford
Everett Winchester 2 G 6'6" 212 GS Senior Baltimore, MD Graduated
Bogdan Zimojic 5 G 6'5" 190 Freshman Belgrade, Serbia Transferred to Tennessee Tech
Kenan Blackshear 13 G 6'6" 215 Sophomore Orlando, FL Transferred to Nevada
Bitumba Baruti 20 F 6'7" 220 GS Senior Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of the Congo Graduated
Brant Ulmer 32 F 6'7" 201 Junior Live Oak, FL Walk-on; left the team for personal reasons
Dardan Kapiti 35 F 6'10" 213 Junior Pristina, Kosovo Transferred to Eastern Kentucky

Incoming transfers

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School
Isaiah Gaines 5 F 6'7" 225 Sophomore Pensacola, FL Northwest Mississippi CC
Jalen Gaffney 12 G 6'3" 180 Junior Columbus, NJ UConn

Recruiting class

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US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Brenen Lorient
SG
Fort Lauderdale, FL Calvary Christian Academy 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Nov 3, 2021 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247SportsN/A    ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2022 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 9, 2022.

Roster

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2022–23 Florida Atlantic Owls men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
F 0 Brenen Lorient 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Fr Forest HS Ocala, Florida
G 1 Johnell Davis 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 203 lb (92 kg) So 21st Century Charter Gary, Indiana
G 2 Nicholas Boyd 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 175 lb (79 kg) So Don Bosco Prep Garnerville, New York
F 3 Giancarlo Rosado 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 247 lb (112 kg) So Palm Beach Lakes HS West Palm Beach, Florida
G 4 Bryan Greenlee 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 191 lb (87 kg) Jr The Rock School
Minnesota
Gainesville, Florida
F 5 Isaiah Gaines 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) So Pensacola HS
NW Mississippi CC
Pensacola, Florida
G 11 Michael Forrest 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 174 lb (79 kg) Sr Blanche Ely HS Lauderhill, Florida
G 12 Jalen Gaffney 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr Westtown School
UConn
Columbus, New Jersey
G 13 Jack Jackson (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Fr Choate Rosemary White Plains, New York
G 15 Alijah Martin 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 210 lb (95 kg) So North Pike HS Summit, Mississippi
G 21 Alejandro Ralat 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 160 lb (73 kg) RS So Saint Andrew's School San Juan, Puerto Rico
G 23 Brandon Weatherspoon 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 186 lb (84 kg) Jr Canton HS
Holmes CC
Canton, Mississippi
F 25 Tre Carroll 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 227 lb (103 kg) RS Fr Charlotte HS Punta Gorda, Florida
F 30 Leo Beath (W) 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Fr Oak Park HS Malibu, California
C 50 Vladislav Goldin 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 240 lb (109 kg) So Putnam Science Academy
Texas Tech
Nalchik, Russia
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: September 3, 2021

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
November 7, 2022*
7:00 pm, CUSA.tv
Lynn W 81–46  1–0
Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena (1,314)
Boca Raton, FL
November 11, 2022*
7:00 pm, SECN+
at Ole Miss L 67–80  1–1
SJB Pavilion (5,974)
Oxford, MS
November 14, 2022*
7:00 pm, SECN+
at Florida W 76–74  2–1
O'Connell Center (7,180)
Gainesville, FL
November 17, 2022*
7:00 pm, CUSA.tv
Bryant
Paradise Invitational
W 85–74  3–1
Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena (1,452)
Boca Raton, FL
November 19, 2022*
6:00 pm, CUSA.tv
Detroit Mercy
Paradise Invitational
W 76–55  4–1
Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena (1,420)
Boca Raton, FL
November 26, 2022*
1:00 pm, ESPN+
at Albany W 73–56  5–1
McDonough Sports Complex (1,093)
Troy, NY
November 30, 2022*
7:00 pm, CUSA.tv
South Alabama W 84–59  6–1
Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena (1,303)
Boca Raton, FL
December 4, 2022*
2:30 pm, ESPN+
at Eastern Michigan W 101–73  7–1
George Gervin GameAbove Center (4,192)
Ypsilanti, MI
December 7, 2022*
7:00 pm, ESPN+
Florida Gulf Coast W 85–53  8–1
Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena (2,281)
Boca Raton, FL
December 14, 2022*
7:00 pm, CUSA.tv
St. Thomas (FL) W 97–74  9–1
Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena (1,316)
Boca Raton, FL
December 17, 2022
2:00 pm, CUSA.tv
FIU W 79–53  10–1
(1–0)
Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena (1,797)
Boca Raton, FL
December 21, 2022*
7:00 pm, CUSA.tv
Northern Kentucky W 67–52  11–1
(1–0)
Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena (1,448)
Boca Raton, FL
December 29, 2022
8:00 pm, ESPN+
at North Texas W 50–46  12–1
(2–0)
UNT Coliseum (3,808)
Denton, TX
January 5, 2023
7:00 pm, ESPN+
UAB W 88–86  13–1
(3–0)
Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena (2,561)
Boca Raton, FL
January 7, 2023
2:00 pm, CUSA.tv
Charlotte W 71–67  14–1
(4–0)
Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena (1,816)
Boca Raton, FL
January 11, 2023
7:30 pm, ESPN+
at FIU W 77–73 OT 15–1
(5–0)
Ocean Bank Convocation Center (2,244)
Miami, FL
January 14, 2023
2:00 pm, ESPN+
North Texas W 66–62  16–1
(6–0)
Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena (3,060)
Boca Raton, FL
January 16, 2023
6:00 pm, ESPNU
No. 24 at Western Kentucky W 76–62  17–1
(7–0)
E. A. Diddle Arena (5,206)
Bowling Green, KY
January 19, 2023
8:00 pm, ESPN+
No. 24 at UTSA W 83–64  18–1
(8–0)
Convocation Center (1,210)
San Antonio, TX
January 21, 2023
9:00 pm, ESPN+
No. 24 at UTEP W 67–59  19–1
(9–0)
Don Haskins Center (5,421)
El Paso, TX
January 26, 2023
7:00 pm, CBSSN
No. 21 Middle Tennessee W 85–67  20–1
(10–0)
Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena (3,082)
Boca Raton, FL
January 28, 2023
4:00 pm, Stadium
No. 21 Western Kentucky W 70–63  21–1
(11–0)
Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena (3,012)
Boca Raton, FL
February 2, 2023
7:00 pm, CBSSN
No. 19 at UAB L 77–86  21–2
(11–1)
Bartow Arena (5,028)
Birmingham, AL
February 4, 2023
4:00 pm, ESPN+
No. 19 at Charlotte W 67–52  22–2
(12–1)
Dale F. Halton Arena (4,037)
Charlotte, NC
February 9, 2023
7:00 pm, ESPN+
Rice W 90–81  23–2
(13–1)
Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena (3,027)
Boca Raton, FL
February 11, 2023
2:00 pm, ESPN+
Louisiana Tech W 90–85 OT 24–2
(14–1)
Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena (2,982)
Boca Raton, FL
February 16, 2023
7:00 pm, CBSSN
No. 25 at Middle Tennessee L 70–74  24–3
(14–2)
Murphy Center (3,402)
Murfreesboro, TN
February 23, 2023
7:00 pm, ESPN+
UTSA W 106–66  25–3
(15–2)
Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena (3,049)
Boca Raton, FL
February 25, 2023
2:00 pm, ESPN+
UTEP W 75–49  26–3
(16–2)
Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena (3,130)
Boca Raton, FL
March 2, 2023
8:00 pm, CUSA.tv
at Rice W 103–74  27–3
(17–2)
Tudor Fieldhouse (2,040)
Houston, TX
March 4, 2023
3:00 pm, ESPN+
at Louisiana Tech W 76–72  28–3
(18–2)
Thomas Assembly Center (2,326)
Ruston, LA
Conference USA tournament
March 9, 2023
6:30 pm, ESPN+
(1) vs. (8) Western Kentucky
Quarterfinals
W 75–51  29–3
Ford Center at The Star (1,773)
Frisco, TX
March 10, 2023
12:30 pm, CBSSN
(1) vs. (4) Middle Tennessee
Semifinals
W 68–65  30–3
Ford Center at The Star 
Frisco, TX
March 11, 2023
7:30 pm, CBSSN
(1) vs. (3) UAB
Championship
W 78–56  31–3
Ford Center at The Star (1,681)
Frisco, TX
NCAA tournament
March 17, 2023*
9:20 pm, TNT
(9 E) No. 25 vs. (8 E) No. 24 Memphis
First Round
W 66–65  32–3
Nationwide Arena (19,564)
Columbus, OH
March 19, 2023*
7:45 p.m., truTV
(9 E) No. 25 vs. (16 E) Fairleigh Dickinson
Second Round
W 78–70  33–3
Nationwide Arena (19,566)
Columbus, OH
March 23, 2023*
9:00 p.m., TBS
(9 E) No. 25 vs. (4 E) No. 20 Tennessee
Sweet Sixteen
W 62–55  34–3
Madison Square Garden (19,624)
New York, NY
March 25, 2023*
6:09 p.m., TBS
(9 E) No. 25 vs. (3 E) No. 15 Kansas State
Elite Eight
W 79–76  35–3
Madison Square Garden (19,680)
New York, NY
April 1, 2023*
6:09 p.m., CBS
(9 E) No. 25 vs. (5 S) No. 18 San Diego State
Final Four
L 71–72  35–4
NRG Stadium (73,860)
Houston, TX
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
E=East. S=South.
All times are in Eastern.

Source[7]

Rankings

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Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
Week
PollPre123456789101112131415161718Final
APRVRV242119RV25RVRV25Not released
CoachesRVRVRVRV2420RVRVRVRV255

*AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings.

Notes

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References

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  1. ^ Lev, Jacob (March 25, 2023). "Florida Atlantic stuns Kansas State to advance to school's first Final Four". CNN. Retrieved March 27, 2023.
  2. ^ "Men's Basketball Ranked No. 24 in AP Poll, Earns First Ranking in School History". FAUSports.com. January 16, 2023.
  3. ^ "College basketball rankings: UCLA joins top five of AP Top 25, FAU in poll for first time in school history". CBSSports.com. January 16, 2023. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
  4. ^ "FAU Accepts Invite to The American". FAUSports.com. October 21, 2021.
  5. ^ "Owls officially become members of American Athletic Conference". WPTV News Channel 5 West Palm. July 1, 2023. Retrieved September 22, 2023.
  6. ^ "FAU's American Move Officially Set for 2023". FAUSports.com. June 10, 2022.
  7. ^ "Mens Basketball Schedule 2022–2023". Florida Atlantic University Athletics. Retrieved October 9, 2022.