FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – An efficient shooting performance along with a stingy defensive effort lifted Nova Southeastern Wednesday night as the Sharks picked up a confidence-boosting victory by beating Palm Beach Atlantic 76-60 in their Sunshine State Conference opener at NSU Arena.
 
Harrison Goodrick led four players in double figures with 18 points and eight rebounds, but it was Nikita Orap's 16 points on 5-of-7 from beyond the arc that provided a much-needed spark off the bench. The Sharks' reserves tallied a total of 11 points in last Friday's defeat, however came through with 30 points on a night in which Nova Southeastern finished at an impressive 57.4% shooting clip from the floor.
 
Meanwhile, the defense dug in deep when it mattered, forcing 20 turnovers while limiting the Sailfish to 35.6% shooting throughout the contest. Palm Beach Atlantic managed just two players in double figures, with last year's leading scorer Bakari Warthen held to just seven points on 14 shot attempts.
 
After tallying just eight points in Nova Southeastern's regular season debut a week ago, Goodrick asserted himself from the opening tip on Wednesday. The senior poured in a quick five points just over a minute into the ball game, helping the Sharks jump out to a rapid 7-0 advantage.
 
Still comfortably in front with 5:26 to go in the first half, Goodrick added an old-fashioned three-point play to extend the cushion to double-digits for the first time at 34-23. Yet, Palm Beach Atlantic battled back with a key 8-1 spurt to close the gap to 39-33 at the break.
 
BJ Edwards was quiet in the opening 20 minutes, notching a lone rebound without attempting a single shot, but found his groove right away in the second half. With the Sharks leading by eight, the point guard went coast-to-coast in transition for a lay-up and the foul to stretch the margin back out to 51-39. Two possessions later, Edwards was at it again, weaving his way through the Sailfish defense for two more to make it a 55-39 ball game in favor of Nova Southeastern.
 
A three-point basket with 9:17 to go in regulation drew Palm Beach Atlantic back to within single-digits. Dwayne Gibson would answer right back, though with three of his 10 points before back-to-back treys by Orap put the early dagger in the Sailfish.
 
NSU has now started 1-0 in the SSC in each of the past three seasons.
 
Edwards wrapped up the night with a perfect 6-for-6 shooting performance, setting a new personal mark for the most field goals made in a single game since joining the Sharks in 2015-16.
 
NSU will look to continue its strong start in league play when it travels to face Tampa this Saturday at 4 p.m. ET. For complete coverage of the action, follow along on Twitter at @NSU_MBasketball and by clicking on the provided links on the schedule page.