Box Score MIAMI SPRINGS, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern University men's basketball team (6-8, 2-4 SSC) faced the No. 7 Barry Buccaneers (13-1, 5-0 SSC) on the road Saturday and fell, 91-76.
NSU was led by
Chris Page (Jr., Plainfield, Ind.), who had a game-high 22 points on 9-for-17 shooting. Senior
Justin Jeangerard (Weaverville, Calif.) led in rebounding with five while senior
Stian Berg (Baerum, Norway) had a team-best six assists. Each finished with a half-dozen points.
"Barry is everything we thought they were," stated head coach
Gary Tuell. "They are deep and talented and athletic… I really think they have a special team. Their guard play is terrific, Deric Hill is a special player. I also think their inside guys are really good. (Jevoni) Robinson just keeps getting better for them, he certainly changes the look of a game when he's in there. They have some really talented DI transfers that are tough for anyone to play, especially our kids.
"We made adjustments after getting behind early. That didn't surprise me, as Barry is at home and they shot awfully well. We made adjustments which allowed us to stay in the game. But we couldn't make enough stops to make a run at them, we just hung around at seven to 11 points all night long it seemed like. To beat a team like Barry you have to make multiple stops and it's hard to do, because they are so talented. They have so many weapons and can score from so many places. They are head and shoulders the best team we've played this year. I think Florida Southern is awfully good, but I think Barry's inside game makes them a little bit better."
NSU struggled from the floor at the start of the game, allowing Barry to establish an early double-digit lead. Barry drained seven of its first 11 3-pointers and led, 25-11, less than eight minutes into the game. While NSU missed five of their first six 3-point attempts, the Sharks heated up after the first 10 minutes, shooting 50 percent for the remainder of the half.
The Sharks were powered by a 15-4 run that cut the deficit to a single possession. However, Barry would answer immediately, making it the closest NSU would get to the home team. The Sharks would come within three points two more times, but would enter the break down, 47-39.
The Bucs shot an outstanding 60 percent from the floor, 50 percent from 3-point range and 100 percent from the foul line in the first half. The Sharks tried to keep pace, shooting 52 percent themselves, but were mostly benefited by seven Barry turnovers. NSU only committed a pair of turnovers by halftime and brought down five offensive rebounds.
Barry came out strong in the second half and stayed in control of the game. The Bucs outscored NSU, 17-11, to start the half and reestablished their largest lead from the first half. However, the pesky Sharks would not let Barry run away with the contest. NSU went on a 14-4 run, capped off by a driving layup and drawn foul from Page to cut the deficit to four.
That would be the closest the Sharks would come to Barry in the second half. At 68-64, Barry went on a 12-2 streak that put the Bucs back up by 14 points with five minutes remaining in the game. NSU hit 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions, but could not make enough stops to prevent the loss.
The Sharks shot 52.6 percent (30-for-57) in the game and 36 percent (9-for-25) from 3-point range. Barry shot 59.7 percent (37-for-62) from the floor and 41.7 percent (10-for-24) from downtown. The Bucs outrebounded the Sharks, 39-19, overall. However, NSU won the turnover battle, 9-13.
Brian Cahill (Sr., Arlington, Va.) returned from a two-game absence and scored a season-high 16 points on 6-for-8 shooting.
Harrison Goodrick (So., Sydney, Australia) had an efficient 17 points on 8-for-12 shooting.
Maurice Fuller (Sr., Westfield, Ind.) tallied six points and two assists.
"I thought Harrison really played well for us, he battled inside and gave us a nice scoring punch inside," said Tuell "But we didn't shoot the ball well from the perimeter, and that hurt us. Chris put points on the board and kept us in the game at times. But overall we talk about paint, transition, free throws, rebounds… those are the areas that we are most concerned about. They beat us badly in those areas tonight. If we are going to compete with these guys, number one, we've got to play harder, and number two, we've got get better in those areas. We'll get back to work on Monday and get ready for Palm Beach Atlantic."
The Sharks will end a three-game road trip Wednesday in West Palm Beach, Fla., facing Palm Beach Atlantic at 7:30 p.m.
