FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Florida Tech men's basketball team overcame a 12-point deficit in the second half of their game Wednesday night against No. 2 Nova Southeastern, but that comeback would fall short of victory as the Panthers ultimately fell, 73-70, to the Sharks.
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: Florida Tech 70, No. 2 NSU 73
Records: Florida Tech (12-8, 5-8 SSC), No 2 NSU (18-2, 12-2 SSC)
Location: Rick Case Arena | Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
 
FIRST HALF:

• NSU started the game on a 7-1 run over the first three minutes of the game.
• A converted three-point play by Niall Harris cut the lead down to 7-4 at the 15:43 mark of the half.
• A layup gave the Sharks an 11-6 lead with 13 minutes to go until halftime.
• Both teams would trade baskets over the next few minutes. Back-to-back layups by Chase Thompson and Max Polk cut NSU's lead down to 16-12, with just under nine minutes left on the clock.
• Isaiah Fuller would follow with a three-point jumper for the Sharks, but Harris would knock down a triple of his own on the next possession.
• A second-chance dunk by Shane Hunter would give NSU a 21-15 lead heading into the under-eight-minute media timeout.
• The back-and-forth would continue, but a fast-break layup by NSU put them up 28-17 heading into the final media timeout of the half.
• A 6-0 run put the Sharks up 34-17 with 2:32 on the clock.
• Tech would respond with a 6-0 run of their own after Thompson and Manos Dimou made back-to-back three-point jumpers to bring the lead down to 34-23 at the 1:32 mark.
• Both teams would add a few more baskets in the waning moments of the half to head into the locker rooms with a score of 36-24 in favor of NSU.

 
SECOND HALF:

• The teams began the second half by trading baskets and possessions. A layup put NSU up, 44-30, heading into the first media timeout of the half.
• After some more back-and-forth, two quick layups by Thompson and a slam dunk by David McCullough inched the Panthers closer, 51-41, with 12:42 remaining in the game.
• Rahsaan Edwards and Elhadji "E.T." Thiam sank back-to-back baskets to cut the lead down to seven, 56-49.
• Those baskets led to an 11-2 run for Tech, capped off by a triple from Thompson, which gave the Panthers a 61-60 lead, with just over four minutes left to play.
• The Sharks took the lead back with six straight points, 66-61, but a trey from Edwards and a layup by Thompson tied the game back up at 66-66 with just over two minutes on the clock.
• Back-to-back baskets would put NSU up 70-66 with just eight seconds left. Both teams traded a point at the charity stripe to make it 71-67 with five seconds to go.
• McCullough converted a quick three-point play for Tech with two seconds on the clock to make it a one-point game, 71-70.
• The Panthers were forced to put NSU at the line, and they added two more free throws in the final seconds to give the game its final score of 73-70.

 
NOTABLE PANTHERS:

• Chase Thompson led the Panthers with 19 points on 8-for-11 shooting, including 3-for-5 from beyond the arc.
• David McCullough scored 16 points and grabbed eight rebounds.
• Niall Harris and Rahsaan Edwards scored 10 points each. Harris added six rebounds while Edwards added five assists.
• Elias Martin brought in 11 rebounds, including five offensively, and blocked two shots.

 
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:

• Florida Tech moves to 38-28 all-time against NSU, including a 15-17 record on the road in Fort Lauderdale.
• With his first triple of the game, Niall Harris recorded his 100th career three-point field goal. Tonight's game was also his 100th career game played.

 
UP NEXT: Florida Tech will return to the confines of the Charles and Ruth Clemente Center for a weekend SSC contest against Lynn. Tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m. in Melbourne, Fla.
 
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