ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The Eckerd men's basketball team aims looks to bounce back from its first conference loss as the Tritons visit Florida Tech on Saturday for a 4:00 PM tip-off.
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ABOUT THE PANTHERS- Florida Tech blazed out to a 10-3 start to the season but hit a skid in January, dropping five straight games and six of its last seven. Five of those losses have come on the Panthers' home floor.
- The Panthers are one of the best in the conference in field goal percentage, ranking second behind Rollins at 48.5 percent. They've shot better than 50 percent eight times this season, but only twice in January. Not surprisingly, they won both of those games.
- A conference-best six players average in double figures for Florida Tech, giving the team a very balanced scoring attack. Corbin Jackson (who missed the first matchup with Eckerd) leads the team with 13.8 points per game followed by Jordan Majors at 13.2 points per game. Sam Daniel (11.5), Jermohn Queen (10.0), Patrick Anderson (11.8) and Randy Echols (11.3) also average 10 or more points per game.
ABOUT THE TRITONS- Eckerd suffered its first conference loss on Wednesday at Saint Leo, 87-84. The Tritons still sit in first place in the SSC standings, one game ahead of Barry and two ahead of Rollins. EC is looking to earn its first regular-season conference title since 1995.
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Drushaun McLaurn has shown moments of being able to take over games in his freshman season. The Jacksonville native is second on the team in scoring with 12.4 points per game and has posted the team's highest number of 20-point games (four) thus far. He's scored 24 points in two of his last three games and leads the team in field goal percentage, shooting 58.1 percent from the floor.
- One of Eckerd's major strong points this season has been defense. The Tritons have routinely held opponents well below their scoring average in multiple contests, although that defense will be tested again against an FIT squad that hung 100 on Eckerd in their first meeting. EC has given up 80 or more points only four times this year. The Tritons rank 36th in the nation in scoring defense, allowing an average of 69.4 points per game.
- The Tritons are three wins away from reaching the 20-win plateau for the first time since 2013. Eckerd has posted 10 20-win seasons under Coach
Tom Ryan.
LOOKING BACKThe Tritons won a thriller over Florida Tech in the first meeting of the season on December 2 in the McArthur Center, pulling out a 104-100 overtime win. Six Eckerd players scored in double-figures, led by Drushuan McLaurn's 20 points.
