Box Score ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The Sunshine State Conference matchup between the Eckerd Tritons and Florida Tech Panthers was nothing short of a barn-burner as the Tritons expanded their winning streak to seven games with a 104-100 overtime victory.
The game was a back-and-forth affair all night with 14 ties and 18 lead changes, and the way regulation ended was no different.
With one minute remaining,
Shane Phillips found
Kevin Walsh spotted for a 3-point basket to put EC up four. However, Florida Tech (6-2, 1-1 SSC) responded with a 3 by Isaac Spence seconds later to narrow the deficit.
Following Spence's basket,
Drushaun McLaurn sank the second of two free throws to put the Tritons up by two points with 30 seconds on the clock. Jermohn Queen quickly slashed through the Eckerd defense to even the score with 28 seconds left with a free throw to follow.
Queen was unable to convert, and McLaurn pulled down the rebound to give Eckerd (7-1, 2-0 SSC) the final scoring opportunity.
Jerrick Stevenson got an open look from beyond the arc but was off the mark as time expired, sending the contest to overtime.
Due to foul trouble, Triton head coach
Tom Ryan called upon
Marco Behori, who has averaged only 5.3 minutes per game during his freshman campaign, to lead the offense down the stretch.
"Tonight things were going south with foul trouble, so I needed to try something else," Ryan said. "Putting a freshman in in that situation can be stressful on them, but that's why they want to be playing in college."
He also claimed that Behori has a "lion's heart" and does not back down from any challenge.
Behori proved ready for the challenge making key plays for the Tritons, including a go-ahead basket inside the paint after fellow freshman McLaurn penetrated the lane and threaded a pass for the assist.
The Panthers responded to tie the game for the final time before Behori helped make what was quite possibly the biggest play of the contest.
Behori drove to his left, but was cut off while in the process of shooting. Instead of putting up a contested shot, he spun mid-air and found Walsh in the corner for a 3-point basket plus a foul on the shot. Walsh converted the free throw to put the Tritons up, 98-94.
A pair of Florida Tech 3's were countered with two McLaurn layups to narrow the margin, 102-100, but the Panthers were forced to foul Stevenson with four seconds on the clock.
"Drushaun attacks the rim hard and can finish with both hands at full speed. He's a really good complement to Jerrick," Ryan said.
Stevenson converted both free throws and the Panthers turned the ball over on the inbounds play, allowing the Tritons to ice the clock for the victory.
FIT built an early eight-point lead thanks to a strong shooting effort. However, Eckerd held tight and took a one-point advantage heading into the break despite six Panther 3-pointers. They finished the night making 14-of-30 from behind the arc.
"I was hoping that they couldn't continue to shoot that well. If we can continue to hang tough and keep solid defense and rebounding then we'll be okay, but they just kept shooting well," Ryan said. "Every time we tried to open up, they would hit 3's with people in their faces."
All season, the Tritons have proven to be a well-balanced team full of players who complement each other on the court. That was the case again tonight with six players in double-figures and 35 points off the bench.
McLaurn led the Tritons with 20 points on 9-of-10 shooting and also grabbed eight rebounds. Walsh followed with 19 points, shooting 4-for-5 from 3-point range. Stevenson added 15 points as well as eight assists behind a 10-12 outing at the charity stripe.
Obi Kyei also tallied 15 points, eight rebounds and two blocked shots.
Trevon Young added 14 points and six boards while
Ray Darnell was the sixth Triton in double figures, scoring 12 points and pulling in seven rebounds.
Overall, the Tritons shot 38-for-64 from the field for a 59.4 shooting percentage and 5-of-12 from beyond the arc at 41.7 percent. Eckerd also won the rebounding battle, 39-32.
FIT's Queen led all scorers with 21 points, shooting 10-of-17 from the field.
EC returns to action on Saturday, December 5, against the University of Tampa (3-4, 0-2 SSC). The contest is set to tip-off at 4:00 PM from the McArthur Center.
