FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern women’s basketball team has moved into first place in the Sunshine State Conference and if the dominoes continue to fall their way, could shore up some other season goals with a win Wednesday night in Melbourne, Fla.
The Sharks (18-6, 10-4 SSC) can clinch the number one seed in the conference tournament and at least a share of the regular season title if they can push past the Florida Tech Panthers on the road (16-8, 8-6 SSC). The Panthers are now tied for third place with Eckerd after a Saturday loss to Florida Southern, their fourth defeat in a row.
Meanwhile, that same day at the NSU Arena, an 89-59 drubbing of then-first-place Lynn allowed NSU to leapfrog the Fighting Knights, who are now 10-5 in conference and will be off Wednesday night. The two teams could share the regular season championship depending on the outcome of the season's final day (March 2), but head coach LeAnn Freeland has her team focused, justifiably, on only Wednesday.
“We are going to keep taking one game at a time and enjoy the remainder of the regular season,” said Freeland. “The only game that matters right now is our game at Florida Tech.”
In the victory over Lynn, the Sharks started out the game on a 10-2 run, and led by double digits for the final 31 minutes of the contest.
“Our win against Lynn was our best 40-minute effort of the season,” said Freeland. “Throughout the season, I have learned our players perform at their best when we keep the defensive game plan simple. The simplicity enables them to apply our defensive principles without over-thinking. In order to finish the season strong, we must continue to keep things simple and out-work teams on defense.”
During this current three-game winning streak, the Sharks have had at least three players in double digits every game, have had 15 or more assists and steals in each, and are forcing their opposition, on average, into 27 turnovers.
Meixandra Porter (Sr., Chantilly, Va.) is averaging just under 22 points a game during the stretch, while
Danielle Robinson (So., Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) is at 18 points per, had eight rebounds in each of the last two wins, and for her efforts, was awarded the SSC Player of the Week.
“Danielle is much deserving of the Player of the Week honor,” said Freeland. “She had a great week against two of the best teams in the league and has consistently produced throughout the season. Something that doesn't reflect in the box score is the intensity she brings on the defensive end. Her ball pressure often enables her teammates to get steals off the ball.”
These two teams met at the NSU Arena back on Jan. 23, and the Panthers survived despite having their 18-point lead cut to three late, winning 83-73.
“FIT played very well in our home loss earlier in the season,” said Freeland. “They are a talented squad who is coached extremely well. Going into Wednesday's game, we are making some slight adjustments to the game plan that should enable us to play at our peak level.”
The Sharks and Panthers will begin at 5:30 on Wednesday from Melbourne. There will be live audio available
HERE, and live stats can be viewed
HERE.
SHARK STATS
• All of the Sharks individuals stayed pat in their rankings in the SSC. Porter is still the league leader in steals (2.6) and 3-pointers per game (2.6) and is second in scoring (16.8), third in 3-point percentage (38.8%) and fourth in free throw percentage (83.1%).
• Robinson is fifth in scoring (14.2) and in steals (2.3).
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Amanda Burakoski (Jr., Brooklyn, N.Y.) is sixth in scoring (13.3) and second in both field goal percentage (52.3%) and 3-point percentage (41.7%). She is also third in 3-pointers per game (2.2) and sixth in steals (2.0).
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Jessica Russi (Jr., Lake Mary, Fla.) has had 20 assists in her last three games, and is at 5.1 for season. She is first in the conference and 17th in the nation.
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Tailor Jones (Sr., Altamonte Springs, Fla.) is still fourth in the conference in assists (3.8).
• Nationally, Burakoski is the highest-ranked Shark in a statistical category, 13th in 3-point percentage. She is also 22nd in field goal percentage.
• Porter is 28th in 3-pointers made, 38th in 3-point percentage, 49th in steals, 56th in free throw percentage, and 60th in scoring.
• The team ranks in the top six in Division II in five categories: field goal percentage (third), scoring offense (fifth), scoring margin (fifth), turnover margin (sixth) and 3-pointers made (sixth).
• They lead the SSC in all of those categories, as well as in assists (also 10th nationally), steals (14th) and assist/turnover ratio (31st).
For the latest NSU news and results, be sure to visit
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clicking here. For the latest news, be sure to sign up for the Shark Alert E-newsletter by
clicking here.
