WINTER PARK, Fla. – A massive run to open the second half allowed Florida Tech to run away from rival Rollins College on Wednesday evening and pick up its second SSC win in dominant fashion over the Tars, 88-65, at Warden Arena.

The victory also ended the Crimson & Gray's five-game losing streak and gave them their first road win of the season.

For the first time all season, all five Florida Tech starters scored in double-figures. In fact, all five starters accounted for 100 percent of the Panthers' scoring in the game.

Valur Valsson led the way, in what was likely his best performance as a Panther to date, with a game-high 21 points on 7-of-10 from beyond the arc, nine assists, and six rebounds. Derek Murphy notched his eighth double-double of the season on 18 points and 10 boards.

Sesan Russell continues to be impressive in just his second game donning the Crimson & Gray, adding 18 points (5-of-8 FG), eight rebounds, six assists, and three steals. Antonis Pefanis tallied 17 points, six rebounds, and four assists, while Trey Schaneville scored 14 points to go along with four assists and four steals.

"This was the first time in 37 years of coaching that I started five guards in a game," said head coach Billy Mims. "I felt that without RJ (Coil) against Rollins, we'd have to make threes to have any chance to win. I told them that tonight we might have to shoot 40-plus threes (and we shot 43)."

The three-ball was flying for the Panthers versus their league rival. Tech shots 42 percent from beyond the arc and made a season-high 18 three-pointers in the game. Rollins struggled from long range, making just 8-of-29.

A rough start to the game by the Panthers allowed Rollins to jump out to a 7-2 advantage at the 16:11 mark of the first half.

Following the first media timeout, Florida Tech came out with renewed focus and proceeded to outscore the Tars 15-4, all from long range, to grab a six-point edge with 13:07 to go before halftime. Valsson went off during the run, knocking down three of the Panthers' five treys during the spree.

Valsson's fourth three-pointer of the first half gave Tech a 22-18 lead midway through the first half. Another three from Schaneville handed the Panthers their largest lead of the opening period, 29-20, with 7:22 to go.

A three-point play by Eric Castaneda cut Rollins' deficit to 36-33 with 3:06 remaining in the first half. However, with just seconds left in the opening frame, Russell dribbled by his defender and hit an off-balance jumper at the buzzer to give Florida Tech a 42-35 advantage at halftime.

Valsson was on fire from three in the opening 20 minutes of action. The sophomore went 5-of-5 from three-point range and finished the half with 15 points and five assists. Russell made all four of his shots and had nine points at the half.

After the Tars sliced the margin to two less than a minute into the second half, Valsson and Pefanis answered with a pair of quick threes to push Tech's lead to 48-40. Those two makes also kicked off a 27-9 run that gave the Panthers' a 69-49 advantage with 12:44 to go in the contest.

Despite the huge lead, the threes continue to fly for the Panthers as Valsson's seventh of the game gave Florida Tech a 76-56 edge with 9:07 left.

The Panthers cruised the rest of the way to win by a 23-point margin on the road.

Florida Tech's win put an end to its three-game losing streak to the Tars, which dated back to the 2016-17 season. Prior to tonight, the Panther's last win over their rival occurred during the 2016-17 campaign, a 90-75 victory at the Clemente Center on Nov. 30, 2016. Tech's last victory at Warden Arena was on Feb. 13 during the 2015-16 season, a 75-72 win.

The Panthers made 47 percent (30-of-64) of their shots in the game and hit 10-of-11 on free throws. The Tars shot 42 percent (25-of-59) from the field and 7-of-9 at the charity stripe.

Tech scored 25 points off Rollins' 18 turnovers and finished with an advantage in rebounding (37-30) and second-chance points (14-10). The Tars had more points in the paint (30-16) and bench points (24-0).

"I am proud of how well we rebounded and moved the basketball," stated Mims. "We shared the ball better tonight than we have all season, which is why we got good looks and all five starters scored in double figures."

Defensively we were quick and scrappy and that helped us create turnovers and get to many loose balls. Very proud of our overall team effort to go on the road and come away with a big win against a well-coached team."

Florida Tech will look to push its win streak to two when the Panthers travel to St. Petersburg, Fla. this Saturday, Jan. 26, for an SSC showdown with the Eckerd Tritons. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. at the McArthur Center.

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