FAMUAN Player of the Week: Justin Ravenel

FAMU senior guard Justin Ravenel going up for a tough layup against Norfolk State on Feb. 11.
Sydne Vigille | The Famuan

Despite the Florida A&M Rattlers losing in Monday night’s game 54-66 to the Norfolk State Spartans, senior guard Justin Ravenel managed to land player of the week yet again for his outstanding performance.

This season has been a career best for Ravenel, and it has not come a moment too soon. The senior is playing his last games as a Rattler, and he is trying to make them count.

“It’s still such a surprise that it’s gone by so fast,” Ravenel said. “Playing the last game is emotional for me, because I see how far we’ve [the team] come. I am hopeful that we will continue to grow and make the most out of these last games.”

According to the Rattler’s head coach Robert McCullum, the team got off to a rough start.

“We got off to one of the worse starts, that we’ve gotten off to in a conference play, and yet I still thought that we were okay.”

In the first half of the game, the score between the Rattlers in the Spartans came close, though the two teams never tied.

The Rattlers put up a good fight, playing hard from start to finish. However, they missed most of their shots. The team attempted 50 field goals, but only made 17.

Of the 17 total field goals secured, five of them were culled up by Ravenel. The Georgia native played 39 minutes for the Rattlers, and during those 39 minutes, he managed to shoot 3-9 on 3-point field goals and successfully made all five of his free throw attempts.

In a post-game conference Ravenel was asked about his thoughts on playing with home court advantage the past four games.

“Being at home is always great, definitely exciting and I definitely wanted to capitalize off being at home and having home court advantage.”

He continued that although he enjoys playing at home and having the support of the fans, he and his teammates must go out on the road and be greedy and secure a win.

Coach McCullum stated that he plans to turn Monday night’s loss into a learning moment, by going back to the tapes to watch film and review shot selection.

“Sometimes it is difficult to pick up on certain things during the course of the game, and when you go back and watch tape you can see it then.”

The team will be traveling to Georgia on Saturday to face the Savannah State, Tigers at 8 p.m.