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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern men’s basketball team (11-12, 5-8 SSC) will look to complete the season-sweep of the Saint Leo Lions (13-10, 7-6 SSC) on the road Saturday at 4 p.m. The game will broadcast live on 640 Sports.
The Sharks have momentum on their side for the first time in over a month as they come off back-to-back wins against Tampa and Palm Beach Atlantic. Both wins came at home after five straight losses in conference play. Against Palm Beach Atlantic, the Sharks overcame an off night from behind the 3-point line to win, 68-63.
“It was nice being at home for a couple of games, and nice that we were able to pick up two wins,” said head coach
Gary Tuell. “But now we’re back on the road for two games with Saint Leo Saturday and Lynn on Wednesday. Both of these games will be opportunities for us to learn more about ourselves and prepare for the conference tournament later this month.”
The Sharks now shift back to Sunshine State Conference play as they face a Lions team that went in a different direction after NSU took out Saint Leo, 67-53, on Jan. 21. After the win, the Sharks lost five straight games before their recent winning streak. Saint Leo was jolted by their loss and won five of their next six games. Those wins came against some of the SSC’s best teams in Florida Tech, Rollins and Florida Southern.
“Saint Leo is the hottest team in the league right now,” said Tuell. “Winning back-to-back road games at Rollins and Florida Southern is quite an accomplishment. I don’t know how far back you have to go to find another team in our league that won back-to-back at those two places, but I’d guess it’s been a while since anyone pulled off that feat.”
The Sharks used a late game run earlier this season to topple the Lions, outscoring them, 23-6, over the final nine minutes.
Iran Hollis (Jr., Hollywood, Fla.) scored a then career-high 23 points on 10-for-12 shooting from the field. He also grabbed a game-high seven rebounds and blocked two shots for the fourth time in his career.
Tim Traversa (Jr., Chicago, Ill.) came off the bench and scored 11 points on 4-for-6 shooting and tied
Louie Schonauer (Jr., Lincoln, Ill.) and
Shaun Pratl (Jr., Chicago Ridge, Ill.) for the team-lead with three assists. The win was a team effort as the Sharks shot 59.1 percent (26-for-44) from the floor and held Saint Leo to 36.7 percent (18-for-49) in the contest. The Sharks shot-13-for-22 in both halves.
“We played well for about 25 minutes against Saint Leo earlier this year when we beat them at our place,” stated Tuell. “But I wasn’t happy with our defensive focus in the second half of that game, and if we’re going to have a chance Saturday we’ll have to play much better. I’m sure Saint Leo wasn’t happy with the way they played here, and I’m just as sure they want to make up for that on Saturday. But our guys may have had something to do with how Saint Leo played.
“We may not be at the top of the league, but we’ve got some guys who can play, too. I wouldn’t trade my team for any other team in the league, regardless of records or standings. I like these guys. They’ve been so much fun to coach, and they’ve worked hard for us. I have great respect for all the teams and coaches in this league. It’s been a very interesting and competitive race. Saint Leo’s emergence has been good for the league and certainly has been the story of the year in the Sunshine State Conference. But I’d be remiss to sell our guys short after the work they’ve put into the season and the way they’ve handled themselves every day preparing for our opponents.”
The Sharks have three games remaining on the schedule, with matchups against Lynn and Rollins following Saturday. The Sharks remain two games behind the Lions, who currently hold fourth place in the SSC with Lynn and Florida Southern right on their heels. The top-four teams in the SSC get to host the first round of the SSC Tournament, making that fourth seed valuable to the five teams in reach of it. The Sharks will likely have to win out to host in the first round.
“When we lost Yann Charles to injury early in the season, we lost our ‘go to’ player,” said Tuell. “Eckerd still has their guy, Lance Kearse, an Saint Leo has their guy, Trent Thomas, and that’s one of the big reasons they’re both playing so well late in the season. So I’m very proud of what our kids have done collectively to make up for the loss of Yann, and for the way they’ve matured and grown throughout the year. We look forward to the final three regular season games, not only for the opportunity to play three outstanding teams, but also because we have a chance to keep playing and keep getting better.”
Fans can listen to the game live on 640 Sports or watch the game
HERE. Live stats will also be available
HERE. Follow the Sharks on Twitter at
www.Twitter.com/NSU_MBasketball.
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