Box Score MELBOURNE, Fla. - The Eckerd College men's basketball team upset No. 25 Florida Tech on the road Saturday, 78-70, in the Sunshine State Conference opener.
Kevin Walsh wasted no time getting his team on the board early opening up the game with a three pointer. FIT tied it up at 5-5 before
E.J. Moody hit a jumper to put his team up by two. Eckerd would hold onto the lead throughout the first half and the rest of the game.
The Tritons were active from three point land during the first 20 minutes of play with three pointers coming from Walsh,
Matt Beneduci and
Keshawn Ingram.
Jerrick Stevenson was able to put his team up by seven, 21-14, after a steal and a layup midway through the first half.
Malcolm Brunner Jr. went on a 6-0 run by himself during a two minute period to put EC up 28-23.
Trevon Young knocked in the final points of the first half with a layup sending Eckerd into the locker room with a 37-28 lead.
Ray Darnell hit a turn-around jumper to start the second half and put his team up by nine. Stevenson knocked home a deep three with 15:40 remaining for their largest lead of the game up 51-34.
The Panthers battled back getting within four points of the Tritons down 64-60 with under five minutes to play. Moody split the defense and drove the lane for two points.
Brian Cobb pulled down an offensive board and put it back up to give his team a 72-64 lead with 1:30 left in regulation. Clinging to a five point lead, Ingram went up and under for two points, drawing the foul and knocking down his free throw to go up by eight with less than a minute to play.
Eckerd held strong in the final seconds pulling off the road victory, 78-70. It was the first win for the Tritons against a ranked opponent since 2013 when EC defeated No. 11 Saint Leo. Walsh led the team in scoring with 13 as Ingram finished with a career high 12 points. Brunner fell one rebound short of a double-double with nine boards while totaling 10 points.
"We knew it was going to be a tough game today on the road," said Head Coach,
Tom Ryan. "Our team looked really good at some points, but Florida Tech's athleticism allowed them to get back in the game. Our new players stepped up off the bench and made an impact to help us win this game."
The Tritons move to 4-2, 1-0 and will host Texas A&M – Kingsville (3-5) on Monday Dec. 15. The game is slated to begin at 7:30 p.m. in the McArthur Center.
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