In FAU’s 65-62 loss to Arkansas-Little Rock on Thursday night, Gantt was held to just 13 points (on 3-7 shooting), snapping an 11-game streak in which he totaled 20 or more points.
Most notably, though, the Owls inexplicably blew a 22-point lead (including a 16-point halftime advantage), letting the Trojans mount a massive comeback on their home court.
At the 9:58 mark, the Trojans cut the deficit to single digits –– 52-43. At 1:54, the game was tied at 60.
In a span of eight minutes, the Owls could only muster eight points, whereas the Trojans more than doubled that figure.
FAU fell behind 64-62 with 35 seconds remaining, cementing defeat in a game that was truly a tale of two halves.
In the first half, the Owls came out firing on all cylinders, going on a 19-0 run to open things up and, at one point, possessing a 22-point lead. At the end of the half, FAU led 35-19, looking like a team ready to hand the Trojans its second home loss.
Other than guard Stefan Moody’s game-high of 24 points, along with Gantt’s aforementioned 13, FAU’s starters turned in a disappointing outing.
Forwards Jordan McCoy and Kelvin Penn, with guard Pablo Bertone, combined for just nine points on a combined 4-10 shooting.
In all, FAU shot well from the field (51 percent) and knocked down seven 3-point attempts. However, they were outrebounded by the Trojans (31-24), turned the ball over 16 times, and were unusually inaccurate from the free-throw line (9-19), factors that contributed to their late-game collapse.
The loss dropped the Owls’ season record to below .500 at 10-11, and evened their Sun Belt Conference mark at 5-5.
FAU plays at Arkansas State on Saturday, Jan. 26 at 8:30 p.m.
