HIALEAH, Fla. (Dec. 9, 2023) – Florida National University’s men’s basketball team posted another impressive outing versus one of the NAIA’s best following a tough 83-75 loss to No. 24 St. Thomas University Bobcats. This was interim head coach Daniel Pressman’s first appearance on the court since taking over coaching duties for the Conquistadors this season. FNU put up a valiant effort on the glass with 36 rebounds and shot an impressive 45.5% from the floor.
In the first half, STU jumped to an early 26-14 lead after a made layup from Stipe Sokol. The Conquistadors made it a 43-40 Bobcat lead heading into halftime thanks to 14 points from Ray Daniel Parrish and 12 from last week’s Continental Athletic Conference’s (CAC) Player of the Week, Matthew Robinson. Despite this offensive explosion, FNU could not keep themselves out of foul trouble, with starters Gary Adams and Cameron Johnson each earning three fouls while Jonathan Mills had four.
In the second half, these early fouls began to take their toll. Johnson picked up two quick fouls in just three minutes of play from the halftime break. This left FNU’s Girardi Cubillan to pick up some valuable minutes down the stretch. Adams was stellar in the second half, connecting on a smooth three pointer to give FNU a 66-64 lead with 9:32 on the clock. Both teams continued to trade blows for the next six minutes until the Bobcats scored, taking a 75-68 advantage with just under six minutes to play.
FNU forced their way back into the contest but were forced to sit Adams with three minutes left after he picked up his fifth personal foul. STU led 77-73 after Adams fouled out and STU went on to outscore FNU 10-2 in the game’s final three minutes.
Daniel Parrish led all scorers with 24 points, while Adams and Robinson combined for 30. Cubillan had seven crucial points in the game, knocking down five of eight shots from the charity stripe.
Up Next: The No. 17 AMU Gyrenes host FNU on Dec. 12 at 7:30 p.m.
