Osprey fans getting cheering on a victory
O'Canada - Men's Basketball Tour: Day 2
8/6/2011 4:58:00 PM | Men's Basketball
The North Florida men's basketball team is participating in a three-game preseason tour in Canada from Aug. 4-10. The UNF athletic communications office will be posting a daily recap/blog of the team's adventures.
August 6 (Day 2 of Tour)
Today was the first of three GAME DAYS!!
After getting a little extra rest with a mid-morning wake up call, the Ospreys then enjoyed a wonderful pre-game meal at Cora's (a popular breakfast/lunch place in Ontario and across Canada). It was an amazing adventure with almost every meal option highlighted by a great selection of fresh fruit. I believe the whole team would say “Bon Appetit”
(check out my choice of a sandwich and fruit or was it a plate of fruit with a side sandwich)
Riding over on the bus, everything was quiet and focused just like a regular season game. Everybody entered the arena with their mind on the game (which I thought was awesome for being early August).
Coach Driscoll has decided to do something a little different with these tour games, giving each of the three full-time assistant coaches the opportunity to serve as the head coach for a game. Coach Bobby Kennen earned the nod for the opener and he was awesome guiding the Ospreys to a 75-63 victory (see game story and boxscore at bottom of page).
One of the funniest things was watching Coach D (who sat across the floor from the bench and way high in the stands) observing the game with his feet tapping and hands flapping while also jotting notes during almost every possession on both ends of the floor.
After earning the win, the travel party loaded up for dinner at another local spot – Bubi's Awesome Eats. This was a big time hamburger spot featuring burgers in the following sizes: 1/3 lbs, 2/3 lbs, 1 lbs, 2 lbs and even an 8-pounder (I will let that sink in for a second)… The 8-pounder is a challenge that has never been finished off as we were told. It comes with several rules and a reward of $1,000 for anyone who can eat it all in 90 minutes (it costs $70 for those of you who think it would be fun to try).
(The rules for the eating contest are pretty strict as you can see)
As always, a road victory for the Ospreys results in the Big D (DESSERT) and we all enjoyed some Dairy Queen on the way back to the hotel.
The guys ended the night with a brief film session and their instructions for Sunday's game
Tomorrow – UNF faces the Windsor Lancers in a rematch before hitting the road for St. Catharines after the game (about a 4 hour drive). Assistant coach Byron Taylor will guide the Ospreys on the bench.
Again the plan is to post a recap of the game along with some other highlights of the day and a possible video clip as well. In addition, I will again be sending live in-game updates via Twitter – so enjoy the action by following @UNFOspreys.
SWOOP-SWOOP!!
Game 1 Story
WINDSOR, Ontario -- The North Florida men's basketball team earned a 75-63 victory over the Windsor Lancers in their opening game of a Canadian Exhibition tour Saturday afternoon at the St. Denis Athletic Centre.
Parker Smith scored 17 points to lead the Ospreys followed by 14 points from Charles McRoy and 11 by Andy Diaz. Newcomer Travis Wallace hauled down nine rebounds to lead UNF on the glass and Will Wilson dished out nine assists in the win.
Every North Florida player got in the scoring column and also pulled down a rebound as UNF boasted a 55-39 advantage on the glass.
Jahmal McQueen tallied a 16-point, 10-rebound double-double to lead the Lancers. In addition, Windsor connected on 10 three pointers in the contest including seven in the second half.
UNF led 39-25 at the half before going scoreless from the floor over the first five minutes of the second half allowing Windsor to close the deficit to just a point.
However, the Ospreys rallied using a late 10-0 surge to regain the lead en route to the double digit win.
The Ospreys and Lancers meet again Sunday at 2 p.m.
Friday, February 27
Friday, February 27
Wednesday, February 11
Saturday, January 24
