MELBOURNE, Fla. – The Florida Tech men's basketball team battled with Eckerd in a back-and-forth affair on Wednesday night, but ultimately fell to the Tritons, 65-63.
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: Florida Tech 63, Eckerd 65
Records: Florida Tech (15-11, 8-11 SSC), Eckerd (13-14, 8-11 SSC)
Location: Charles and Ruth Clemente Center | Melbourne, Fla.
 
FIRST HALF:

• Both teams went back and forth to begin the contest. A second-chance layup by Niall Harris put Tech up 7-3 with 16:14 on the clock.
• A few minutes later, Eckerd tied the game up at 7-7 on a pair of free throws by Isaiah Placide.
• Down 9-7, a layup by Rahsaan Edwards and a converted three-point play from David McCullough put the Panthers up 12-9 with 12:31 left in the half.
• Both defenses would lock in for the next few minutes, a free throw from Edwards at the 9:25 mark gave Tech a 13-11 lead.
• Just over a minute later, Eckerd would knot the game at 13-13 after a pair of converted free throws.
• Chase Thompson would answer on the opposite end with a converted three-point play to put the Panthers back on top, 16-13, heading into the under-eight-minute media timeout.
• The back and forth continued for the next few minutes. A pair of Panthers free throws from Harris tied the game back up a t 17-17 with five minutes left in the half.
• Back-to-back baskets for Eckerd put the Tritons up 21-17 just a minute later.
• A converted three-point play from Edwards would tie the game and take the lead back for Tech, 24-23, with 2:27 to go until halftime.
• The Panthers would close out the half on a 9-3 run, with all nine points for Tech coming from Edwards to take a 30-25 lead into the halftime locker room.

 
SECOND HALF:

• Both teams would continue the back-and-forth affair to begin the second half. Back-to-back converted three-point plays by Edwards and Thompson would extend the Panthers' lead to 40-30.
• Another Edwards basket would cap a 12-2 run for Tech to take a 42-30 lead and force the Tritons to take an early timeout just three minutes into the period.
• George Kimlbe would catch fire for Eckerd and score six straight points for the Tritons to cut the lead down to 45-37 with 13:29 left to play.
• Elias Martin would convert a three-point play to go back up by double digits, but Eckerd would respond on the next possession to send the teams into the under 12-minute media timeout with a score of 47-39.
• The Tritons would rattle off an 11-4 run to cut the lead down to 51-50 with just under eight minutes to go.
• Another converted three-point play for Harris would push Tech's lead back up to 56-52 with 6:24 on the clock.
• A deep triple from Placide would tie the game for Eckerd at 56-56 with 5:26 to play.
• A couple of minutes later, the Tritons would take the lead, 60-58, on a driving layup by Carr Thiam with under four minutes to go.
• Two free throws from Edwards would cut Eckerd's lead down to 62-60 with 2:30 left.
• Just under a minute later a layup from Martin would bring the lead down to one, 63-62.
• Following a steal by Thompson, Harris would get fouled and knock down one of two free throws to knot the game at 63-63.
• A foul on the other end of the floor would send Thiam to the line for the Tritons. He would go one for two to take a 64-63 lead with 44 seconds left on the clock.
• Tech would miss their next shot on the next possession and would be forced to send Eckerd to the line.
• Thiam would be fouled and would convert his first attempt to make it 65-63. He would miss the second, but Timothy Thompson skied for the offensive rebound and was sent to the line by the Panthers with just nine seconds to play.
• Thompson would miss both attempts and Harris would try to win the game with a three on the opposite end, but his shot rang off the rim and the game ended with a final score of 65-63.

 
NOTABLE PANTHERS:

• Tonight's player of the game was Rahsaan Edwards. Edwards finished with a team-high 23 points, five assists, and four rebounds.
• David McCullough tallied his fifth double-double of the season with 17 points and 11 rebounds.
• Chase Thompson totaled eight points, five steals, and three blocks.
• Elias Martin added six blocks on the defensive end.

 
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:

• Florida Tech moves to 34-64 all-time against Eckerd, including an 18-28 record at home against the Tritons.
• Elias Martin has recorded at least three blocks per game for the last six games. He has recorded at least two blocks in 20 out of 26 games played this season.

 
UP NEXT: Florida Tech will host Tampa on Saturday, March 2 for Senior Day and the final regular season game of the year. Tip-off is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. in Melbourne, Fla.
 
For the latest news, updates, and information on the Florida Tech men's basketball team, visit FloridaTechSports.com. Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest Panthers news by following Florida Tech Athletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.