ST. PETERSBURG -- The Eckerd Tritons men's basketball team earned a win over the Rollins Tars on Wednesday by a score of 82-56.
It was a back and forth start to the contest, with neither team holding a lead of more than a single possession through the first six minutes of play. Staring at a 10-10 deadlock, the Tritons broke things open with the game's next 16 points, all while holding the Tars without a point over the course of the next seven minutes. Four different Tritons scored during the 16-0 run, with
Carlos Cortijo highlighting the surge with 11 of his 17 points during that span. Leading 26-10, the Tritons maintained the double-digit advantage through the next seven minutes, seeing it reach 16 two other times before
Wyatt Triestman's three at 3:25 moved it out to 17 at 36-19. The Tars dipped the margin below 10 once with 90 seconds showing on the clock, but a pair of free throws from Cortijo moved it back out to double digits. Eckerd led 38-28 at the halftime break.Â
A physical battled kicked off the second half, with both teams racking up the fouls and trading free throws through the first three minutes. The Tritons saw their lead reach 16 around the five-minute mark and eventually got it out to 19 following
Ollie Pasque's triple with 12 minutes to go. Two minutes later, Eckerd saw the differential reach 20 points for the first time. Rollins got within 17 at 6:23, but it was the final time the visitors got below 20 the rest of the way. The Tritons held the Tars to just four points in the final eight minutes of action.
The Tritons shot 45 percent in the win and were led by Triestman's double-double of 19 points and 10 rebounds. Cortijo was next with 17 points to go with seven assists, while
Miquel Llompart and
Timothy Thompson both added 11. Eckerd out-rebounded Rollins by nine and forced 19 turnovers from the visitors.
With the win, the team improves to 8-6 on the season. The Tritons will be back in action next Wednesday at Saint Leo.
