ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The Tritons' offense surged for a 16-point lead in the first half. However, Wayne State (Neb.) rallied in the second half to defeat the Eckerd men's basketball team, 89-87, at the McArthur Center Saturday night on day two of the Eckerd Thanksgiving Classic.
Eckerd's offense erupted in the opening half, using an 18-3 stretch to take a 20-9 advantage with 11:09 left. EC continued to cruise in the opening half with a late 15-5 run to take an 18-point favor before holding a 48-32 advantage at intermission.
The Wildcats surged to start the second half, utilizing a 20-6 run to pull within two, 54-52, at the 14:54 mark. WSC took a one-point edge two minutes later. However, the Tritons responded with eight consecutive points for a 64-57 lead. Wayne State followed with a 14-2 run to push in front by five at the 7:17 mark.
Eckerd and Wayne State swapped the lead six times over the last seven minutes. A Jordan Janssen layup with 50 seconds remaining put WSC up by two, 86-84. Daniel Love tallied back on a three-point play with 12 second left, pulling EC within one, but they were unable to hit the game-winner.
HOW IT ENDED
FINAL: Wayne State 89, Eckerd 87
RECORDS: Eckerd 3-1 (1-0 SSC); Wayne State 6-1 (1-0 NSIC)
NOTES AND NUMBERS
- Three Tritons logged double-figures: Love (22), Carr Thiam (20), and Mekhi Perry (16).
- Thiam's 20 points and Perry's 16 were both career-highs.
- Thiam and Love led EC on the boards with five a piece.
- EC had an impressive 63.3 field goal percentage in the first half, before finishing the night at 58.3 percent.
- Wayne State had a 40-28 rebound advantage.
UP NEXT
Eckerd returns to conference action with a trip to Florida Southern on Wednesday, slated for 7:30 PM.
