BOX SCORE

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern women’s basketball team (9-4, 2-2 SSC) overcame an eight-point halftime deficit to knock off No. 22 Florida Southern (10-3, 2-2 SSC), 92-87, in an overtime thriller that featured a total of 64 fouls. Danielle Robinson (Fr., Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) scored 11 of her game- and  new career-high 27 points in the extra session to help ensure a Sharks’ victory Saturday afternoon at the NSU Arena in the Don Taft University Center.
 
The opening stanza proved challenging for the Sharks, as the Mocs led the entire 20 minutes of play. Florida Southern opened its largest lead of the half at the 10:19 mark when Michaela Hawley hit a pair of free throws to put the Mocs up 20-7. Robinson hit a late 3-pointer for the Sharks to close the gap to eight, 38-30, heading into the locker room at halftime.
 
Meixandra Porter (Jr., Chantilly, Va.) led all scorers in the first half with 15 points, sinking 6-of-6 from the charity stripe. Tracy Fosterling netted 11 points for the Mocs.
 
The Sharks came out in the second half with a renewed sense of energy, scoring nine straight to take the lead just 90 seconds into the action. The run was capped with Robinson laying in a contested layup and hitting a free throw after a Jasmine Wilkins’ (So., Miami, Fla.) steal.
 
The teams traded scores over the next eight minutes and headed into the final 10 minutes knotted at 57-57. Hawley put the Mocs up by six, 70-64, with four minutes left to play, but the Sharks wouldn’t back down. Jessica Russi (So., Lake Mary, Fla.) responded immediately with a trey and classmate Richelle Carach (So., Naples, Fla.) added the next four points to get NSU within one, 72-71, with 2:03 showing on the clock.
 
With the Sharks down four after a Mocs’ bucket and free throw, Russi stepped up and hit a leaning jumper in the paint to get NSU within two. With 14 seconds remaining, Jada Buckner (Sr., Loudon, Tenn.) grabbed a rebound off a Fosterling miss and pushed the ball down the court where Russi once again laid the ball in the net to tie the score at 75-75, forcing an extra period.
 
Meixandra Porter posted 24 points through regulation, a new career-best, but would be forced to watch her teammates from the sidelines in overtime, having accumulated five fouls. A total of 51 fouls were called in regulation, including 32 against NSU.
 
Overtime was dominated by Robinson from the start. The young guard put NSU ahead 14 seconds into the action with a nice drive to the hoop. She followed with two more layups and a pair of free throws to keep NSU ahead 85-84 with just under 60 ticks left on the clock.
 
With the Sharks leading by two, the Mocs committed a crucial error. Danielle Walsh was called for an offensive foul that was compounded by the bench receiving a technical foul after arguing its legitimacy. Robinson would hit three more free throws to help seal the victory over the final six seconds to give NSU its second victory over a ranked opponent this season.
 
Robinson finished 9-of-19 from the field, as NSU shot 50 percent from the field as a team, its best percentage this season. Russi finished the game with 16 points on 5-of-6 shooting, nailing both of her 3-point attempts. The Mocs also had two players reach 20 points, as Hawley finished with 26 and Megan Dzikas tallied 20.
 
The come-from-behind victory was even sweeter for NSU, as it overcame being whistled for an all-time high 35 fouls in the game.
 
The Sharks will next be in action a week from today when they visit Tampa Jan. 14.

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