Melbourne, Florida – Florida Tech Men's Basketball returned home this evening for another Sunshine State Conference matchup. The Panthers played host to the Buccaneers of Barry University in front of a packed Clemente Center.
SSC PLAY – GAME TEN
Final: Florida Tech Panthers 73, Barry Buccaneers 69
Records: Florida Tech (7-11, 3-7 SSC)
| Barry (9-9, 4-6 SSC)
Location: Clemente Center
| Melbourne, Florida
GAME NOTES:
First Half:
- To open tonight's contest, Barry hit a three on their first possession before Xavier Ford-Belton responded with a lay to get Tech on the board.
- The Panther defense came to play from the tip, holding the Buccaneers to under ten points through the first seven minutes of play.
- Tech got baskets from Greyson Williams, Grant Lovette and Ford-Belton but found themselves trailing 19-12 at the midway point of the first half.
- A 12-2 run from the Panthers closed the gap with under five to play, but Barry responded with a 7-0 run of their own to extend their lead.
- In the final minute of the half, Matt Daulerio hit a three-pointer to make it a five-point game at the break.
HALFTIME SCORE - Florida Tech 26, Barry 31
Second Half:
- Coming out of the break, the Panthers were looking to make a statement and take control of the game. They opened the final 20 minutes with a Ford-Belton layup before Ty Harpring drilled back-to-back threes to tie the game at 34-34.
- This ignited a huge 16-0 that fired up the Clemente Center. Tech got huge threes from Harpring and Lovette and the team combined for 3 steals and 2 blocks during the run.
- After taking a 52-38 lead with 11 minutes left, Tech continued to roll with Lovette hitting another three and Daulerio getting inside for a tough finish at the rim.
- While it looked like the Panthers had taken full control, Barry responded with another multi-possession run.
- However, despite the Tech lead being cut to single digits, the Panthers never stopped competing as Ty Harpring hit his seventh three-pointer of the night and Greyson Williams knocked down clutch free throws.
- With Tech leading 70-66 and just over a minute to go, the Panthers stymied any chance of a Barry comeback with tough defense and a Ford-Belton free throw to ice the game.
FINAL SCORE - Florida Tech 73, Barry 69
NOTABLE PANTHERS:
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:
- The Panthers improve to 22-18 all-time at home against Barry and have won each of the past five meetings at the Clemente Center.
- Xavier Ford-Belton has entered the top-20 in career blocks with his 2 block performance in tonight's win.
- With his seven threes tonight, Ty Harpring is the first Freshman since Simon Cummings in 2008-09 to eclipse 40 three-pointers in a single season.
UP NEXT: Tech will stay home for another game in the Clemente Center this weekend. The Panthers will take on the University of Tampa this Saturday at 4:00n PM
For the latest news, updates and information on the Florida Tech Men's Basketball, 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.
