DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Florida Tech's road struggles continued Wednesday in its SSC showdown with Embry-Riddle on Wednesday, as the Panthers were defeated by the Eagles, 86-78, at the ICI Center.

Murphy led the Crimson & Gray with 21 points and eight rebounds. Sesan Russell added 18 points and five steals, while Antonis Pefanis finished with 17 points, six rebounds, three assists, and three steals.

Mekhii Noble recorded 12 points and six boards and Valur Valsson tallied eight points and eight assists in the loss.

The Eagles opened the scoring on a layup by Luka Majstorovic on their first possession. Tech answered with a three by Russell, off an assist from Valsson, and the Panthers had the early 3-2 lead less than a minute into the game.

Later in the half, Valsson broke an 11-11 tie with his first three-pointer to give Florida Tech a 14-11 lead with 15:38 still left in the first half. Pefanis then gave Tech a four-point advantage, 23-19, on his second three of the game with 11:43 remaining in the half.

The teams exchanged baskets for a number of possessions until a pair of free throws by Elijah Jenkins handed ERAU a 32-31 edge with 7:41 to go. Embry-Riddle was able to build its lead to nine, 49-40, with just over a minute left in the opening frame thanks to several strong trips to the free throw line.

However, a layup by Russell with 45 seconds left in the half and then a buzzer-beater by Pefanis trimmed the Panthers' deficit to 49-44 at the half.

Embry-Riddle opened the second half on a 10-4 run, with all 10 points coming from Nashad Mackey, and the Eagles grabbed a 59-48 lead with 17:26 remaining.

The Panthers got within six of the Eagles after three consecutive free throws by Pefanis made the score 59-53 at the 15:50 mark of the second half. However, ERAU answered with a 13-4 spree that pushed its lead to 72-57 with less than seven minutes left.

Noble would get Tech back in the game with a tip-in and dunk on consecutive possessions to bring the Panthers to within eight, 78-70, with 2:17 remaining.

Murphy made a pair of free throws to bring the Panthers within six of the Eagles with 1:56 left. He then cut the margin to six again, 82-76, on a mid-range jumper with 46 seconds to go.

With time ticking down, Florida Tech needed to foul and send the Eagles to the line to extend the contest. Unfortunately, ERAU made all of its free throws down the stretch and the Panthers were unable to catch up. Eventually, the Eagles went on to earn their 12th win of the season.

The Panthers have now lost seven games in a row and drop to 1-8 on the road.

Florida Tech went 29-of-74 (.392) from the field and 10-of-12 (.833) at the charity stripe. The Panthers also went 10-of-32 (.313) from beyond the arc, after starting the game 7-of-10. ERAU made 27-of-56 (.482) shots in the game, including 8-of-21 (.381) from three, and 24-of-28 (.857) at the free throw line.

The Eagles controlled the rebounding battle, 47-32, including a 33-18 edge on the defensive glass. ERAU also ended with a slight advantage in second-chance points, 18-15, and points in the paint, 34-32. Tech scored more points off turnovers, 21-9, and fast break points, 11-9.

Florida Tech returns to the Clemente Center this Saturday, Feb. 23, to take on SSC foe, No. 12 Lynn. Tip-off between the Fighting Knights and Panthers is set for 4 p.m. 

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