Owls record first ever victory in the Mitchell Center Lyrell Barfield led all scorers with 16 points as FAU handed South Alabama their first home conference loss of the season, defeating the Jaguars 62-55 on Wednesday night from the Mitchell Center. The Owls (10-10, 6-4) controlled the pace of play the entire night and held second leading scorer Shakira Nettles to just two points on 1-of-12 shooting. Nettles torched FAU for 25 points in the Jaguars 68-58 victory over FAU earlier this month. We had a few breakdowns defensively, but for the most part we did a great job defending who we wanted to, said head coach Chancellor Dugan. Lyrell Barfield continued her hot play scoring 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting including 4-of-6 from three-point range. The junior entered play on Wednesday ranked 3rd in the Sun Belt Conference in three-point field goals per game (1.9). The Jaguars (12-9, 7-3) have now lost three straight Sun Belt games after starting out a perfect 7-0 in conference play. Both teams traded baskets and the lead in the early going until six minutes remaining in the first half. With the Owls on top 22-18, FAU streaked out on a 9-0 run to take a 31-18 lead with 3:59 remaining. However, after the media timeout, South Alabama answered with a 9-0 run of their own as FAU took a 31-27 lead into halftime. The Owls burst out of the gates early in the second half, extending the lead to 47-34 with 11:52 remaining after Teri Stamps knocked down her second three-pointer of the game. Lyrell Barfield continued to pile onto the lead as her fourth three-pointer of the game with 6:52 remaining gave the Owls their largest lead at 54-38. Despite a furious rally down the stretch, South Alabama came up short and could not overcome the large deficit as FAU won its first ever game inside the Mitchell Center against the Jaguars. Carla Stubbs had another solid all-around performance for FAU as the senior collected a career-high 13 rebounds, scored eight points and recorded a game-high four assists. The Owls will head back to Boca Raton on Thursday to prepare for a Saturday evening matchup against in-state rival FIU. Tip-off is set for 5 p.m. at FAU Arena.
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