INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: Florida Tech 85, Florida Southern 80
Records: Florida Tech (7-1, 2-0 SSC) | Florida Southern (2-5, 0-2 SSC)
Location: Clemente Center | Melbourne, Fla.

FIRST HALF: 

• Sean Houpt got the Panthers going with a three to start the game. From there, Florida Tech jumped out to a 9-0 lead with 16:34 to go. 
• Back-to-back three-balls from Runako Ziegler and Sesan Russell gave the Panthers a 22-13 lead with 11:30 left. 
• FSC answered with a 12-3 run to tie the game at 25-25 on Jadin Booth's three-pointer with 8:38 to go. 
• The teams exchanged baskets the next 7 minutes before the Mocs took a 40-37 lead on Jack Casale's jumper with 1:11 remaining. 
• Mekhii Noble scored on a put-back and then hit a short-range jumper in the final 46 seconds to put Florida Tech ahead 41-40 at halftime. 

 
SECOND HALF: 

• The teams continued to exchanged baskets in the second half. Following a three-point basket by Houpt that gave the Panthers a 54-43 lead, the Mocs ensued on an 8-0 run to grab a 61-54 advantage with 11:37 left. 
• Houpt answered with another three from the corner to cut the margin to 61-57. The Panthers eventually tied the game at 63-63 on a steal and fastbreak dunk by Ziegler with 8:18 remaining.
• Tech grabbed a 72-66 lead with 5:48 to go on a jumper by Ziegler but was unable to shake off the Mocs as they continued to answer every basket by the Panthers. 
• Houpt's 6th made three of the game put the Panthers ahead 78-73 with 3:53 remaining. The Mocs tied the game less than a minute later to make it 78-78 with 2:13 to go.
• Noble then pushed Tech's lead back to two with his layup with 1:05 to go. Russell then took advantage of a Mocs turnover and increased the lead to 82-78 on his layup with 37 seconds left. 
• After Rhodes made both of his free throws to cut the margin to 82-80 with 26 seconds remaining, the Panthers were able to close out the game at the line to earn their 7th win in a row and improve to 2-0 in the SSC. 

NOTABLE PANTHERS:

• Mekhii Noble recorded his 8th double-double of the season on a career-high 25 points and 14 rebounds to go along with 2 blocks and one steal on 10-17 shooting and 5-7 at the free throw line. 
• Sean Houpt tied a career-high with 24 points in addition to 2 rebounds, 2 steals and 1 assist on 7-16 shooting and 6-12 beyond the arc
• Runako Ziegler tallied 16 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists and 1 steal on 6-15 shooting and 3-4 at the charity stripe
• Sesan Russell added 15 points, 8 assists and 4 rebounds on 6-17 from the field with 3 made three-pointers
• Mate Papai recorded a career-high 14 rebounds to go along with 4 points, 3 assists and 2 blocks on 2-4 shooting. 

COACH BILLY MIMS POST GAME Presented by Jacobus & Fielding, Injury Attorneys:


INSIDE THE BOXSCORE:

• Florida Tech finished the game shooting 43.7% (31-71) from the field, 34.5% (10-29) beyond the arc and 72.2% (13-18) on free throws. 
• FSC shot 39.4% (28-71) in the contest, including 34.3% (12-35) from three-point range, and converted 85.7% (12-14) at the line. 
• Panthers won the rebounding battle (46-41) and had an edge in offensive rebounds (17-13) and second chance points (18-12). 
• Tech ended with an advantage scoring in the paint (32-20), while FSC outscored the Panthers in bench points (29-1) and fastbreak points (16-11). 

 
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:

• This is the first time in Billy Mims' tenure at Florida Tech that the Panthers started the season 2-0 in SSC play. Tech hasn't opened the SSC schedule 2-0 since the 1998-99 campaign. 
• Florida Tech's 7-game win streak is the longest since the Panthers won 9 in a row during the 2012-13 season. 

UP NEXT: Florida Tech looks to keep its win streak alive on Saturday, Dec. 3, when the Panthers continue SSC play at Rollins College. Tip-off is at 4 p.m. at the Alfond Sports Center. 
 
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