BOCA RATON, Fla. - The Florida Tech men's basketball team dropped its road matchup with Florida Atlantic on Wednesday evening, 98-52, to close out it preseason exhibition schedule. 

Florida Tech shot 19-of-59 against FAU and made just 4-of-26 attempts from three-point range. The Owls made 39-of-73 from the field, including nine threes. The Panthers were outrebounded 48-31 and had 21 turnovers in the game. 

Derek Murphy paced Florida Tech with a game-high 29 points on 10-of-22 from the field and six rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Dwayne Orija scored five points in the game while Harry Craik added four points and a rebound. Antonis Pefanis hauled in six rebounds.

The Owls grabbed a quick lead in the ballgame after Pefanis turned the ball over on the Panthers' first possession. Darius Wright even it up at 2-2 with his put-back on a Pefanis miss. 

After exchanging the next two buckets, the Owls ensued on an 18-2 run to build their lead out to 22-6 with 12:37 to go in the first half. 

Three consecutive treys by Murphy and a jumper by Pefanis made up an 11-3 run by the Crimson & Gray which trimmed their deficit to 25-17 with 8:37 remaining before halftime. However, FAU closed the half scoring 15 of the final 18 points and went into the locker room leading the Panthers, 40-20. 

The Owls continued to expand their lead in the second half and held a 64-29 advantage with 13:20 still to go in regulation. 

Murphy, who despite the score never slowed down during the game, tallied the final points of the contest for the Panthers, ending his night with a three-point play with 1:08 left on the clock. 

The Florida Tech men's basketball team opens its 2018-19 campaign by hosting the South Region Tip-off this Friday and Saturday, Nov. 9-10, at the Clemente Center. The action begins at 1 p.m. with the Panthers' opener against Auburn-Montgomery set for a 3:30 p.m. start. 

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