AVE MARIA, Fla. —- Ave Maria had trouble getting second chance points Saturday as they fell to the Keiser Seahawks 87-70. Keiser outrebounded Ave Maria 45-32 and was able to get 17 points off the offensive boards while the Gyrenes were held to just six.
The big game changer was a 14-0 run for the Seahawks in the middle of the first half. The game started out even with both teams grabbing a lead at some point in the first 10 minutes, but the Ave Maria went cold. For a four-minute stretch, the Gyrenes went 0-for-5 from the floor, all from behind the arc, while Keiser drained five buckets. The run started when the teams were tied at 24 and then shot Keiser ahead of Ave Maria by double digits. The Gyrenes never recovered as Keiser led by 10 or more points for the rest of the game.
In the second half, the Gyrenes made eight threes in an attempt to comeback, but poor rebounding and Keiser shooting over 50% from the floor kept that attempt at bay. The closest Ave Maria would come to the Seahawks was within 10 points, but KU would hit a bucket to get back out to a four-possession lead.
The Gyrenes got the last bucket of the game, but by then the game was out of reach and the Seahawks won 87-70.
Jaylen White was the leading scorer for the Gyrenes with 19 points. Joining him in double figures was Jonathan Effertz at 14 and Jack Watkins with 13. As a team the Gyrenes hit 14 threes, which was above their game average this season, but the shooting percentage from downtown was lower than normal at just 36%. Fourteen trifectas does bring their season total up to 306. They are 33 threes away from tying the 2019-20 season for the second most threes in a season in program history. At the pace they are on, they should hit this mark in their penultimate game of the regular season against Webber. The Gyrenes are 38 away from tying the 2018-19 season for the most threes in a season, a mark they should hit in the season finale against Coastal Georgia.
Following the loss, Ave Maria falls to 18-6 overall and 7-3 in conference play. St. Thomas won their game against Warner on Saturday afternoon which now puts the Gyrenes and the Bobcats in a tie for first place in the Sun Conference.
Ave Maria is on the road for the next game, traveling east to Miami Gardens, Florida, to take on the Florida Memorial Lions. The last time these two teams played, the Gyrenes had one of their worst games from behind the arc in program history, going 7-for-42, and lost 80-66. If AMU can have an average night from downtown, they should fare much better against the Lions.
The next Gyrene home game will be the last one of the regular season as Ave Maria matches up with the St. Thomas Bobcats Saturday, February 17. That game could very well decide who wins the Sun Conference regular season and hosts the conference tournament Final Four March 1-2. Both games can be streamed on the Sun Digital Network.
