FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - Behind Dwayne Gibson's 23 points and a clutch defensive stand in the closing seconds, Nova Southeastern upset 20th-ranked Southern Connecticut State 81-78 in a thrilling matchup Sunday afternoon at the NSU Arena.

Gibson carried the offense early by pouring in 15 of his 23 points in the first half, while both BJ Edwards and Gerard Tarin recorded double-doubles to help the Sharks improve to 2-2 on the season.

The nation's leading scorer Michael Mallory tallied a game-high 30 points in the effort, but stepped out of bounds on a game-tying, three-point attempt with 0.8 seconds remaining in regulation to eliminate any chance at overtime for the Owls.

Southern Connecticut State quickly jumped out to a six-point advantage less than four minutes in the contest, however, 10 points in a 2:35 span by Gibson put the Sharks on top 29-22 midway through the opening half.

That margin grew to as many as nine, but a Michael Bozzuto trey with six seconds left closed the gap to 41-38 at the break.

The second half was truly a back-and-forth affair as both sides traded leads 10 times in the final 20 minutes. A triple by Isaiah McLeod evened up the score at 77-77 with 2:33 to go until Harrison Goodrick bullied his way through the Owl defense for the go-ahead score at the 1:27 mark.

The Owls' Joey Wallace converted 1-of-2 at the free throw line on the ensuing possession to cut Nova Southeastern's cushion in half. A strong drive and finish, though, by Edwards with 20 seconds showing on the clock proved to be enough to seal the deal.

Troy Spears continued his hot shooting with 13 points in the victory to go along with Goodrick's near double-double of nine points and 11 boards.

NSU will look to maintain the momentum when it returns to Sunshine State Conference play at No. 11 Barry this Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. ET. For complete coverage, log onto NSUSharks.com.