Tuesday, October 25, 2011

MACON, Ga. - The 2011-12 Atlantic Sun Conference Men's Basketball Season gets underway on Friday, Nov. 11th and prior to that date the A-Sun office will preview each of the ten member institutions.

North Florida's Robert Harper sits down with Ospreys Head Coach Matthew Driscoll and junior guard Jerron Granberry, a preseason All-Conference Selection in the North Florida season preview.

Men's Basketball Capsule
Coaches Poll Predicted Finish: 3rd
Media Poll Predicted Finish: 4th
2010-11 Overall Record (A-Sun): 15-19 (10-10; 6th) - Tournament Runner-up
Season Schedule // Roster

Notes:
• At last year's General Shale Brick Men's Basketball Championship, North Florida entered as the six-seed and was making only its second appearance in the conference championship in program history. However, Coach Driscoll and the Ospreys advanced to the Championship Final with wins against No. 3 Jacksonville and two-time defending champions, ETSU, before falling to Belmont.
• The core of last year's team returns with six of the top-seven scorers looking to capitalize on last year's postseason run. Granberry and Parker Smith led the team in scoring at 12.0 points per outing with Andy Diaz (10.6) and Jimmy Williams (8.4) chipping in for the Ospreys. Diaz, a preseason All-Conference selection, led the team in rebounding (5.5), while Smith's .861 free-throw percentage and 2.65 three-pointers per contest ranked first and second in the league, respectively.
• A tough non-conference schedule awaits the Ospreys with seven games lined up against four different BCS-level conferences. Last season, North Florida also faced off against seven BCS conference teams.
• Last season, the Ospreys went 5-2 in non-conference games against non-BCS level teams and 4-1 in neutral court games. UNF claimed the Mayan Division of the Cancun Challenge on Nov. 24th with wins against Wyoming, Prairie View A&M and Morgan State. It marked the second-straight season Coach Driscoll has guided UNF to a regular-season tournament title.

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The Atlantic Sun Conference is an NCAA Division I league with 10 member institutions committed to Building Winners for Life. The A-Sun meets the challenge of maintaining the highest standards in academic and athletic achievement with a true balance between student and athlete. Headquartered in Macon, Ga., the A-Sun boasts six of the top eight media markets in the Southeast. The A-Sun includes a blend of the most prestigious and dynamic private and public institutions in the region: Belmont University, East Tennessee State University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Jacksonville University, Kennesaw State University, Lipscomb University, Mercer University, University of North Florida, University of South Carolina Upstate and Stetson University.