FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Nova Southeastern fell behind early Friday night and was never truly able to recover as the Sharks eventually fell to Embry-Riddle 89-71 at NSU Arena.
 
The defeat drops head coach Gary Tuell's club to 4-8 on the season, while the Eagles improve to 8-4 overall.

Gerard Tarin tied a game-high with 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting to go along with 14 points and seven assists from BJ Edwards in the effort. Harrison Goodrick, though, saw his streak of four straight double-doubles come to a close after being held scoreless in the first half before finishing with four points and four rebounds on the night.
 
"You have these games once or twice a year, and for whatever reason it's just not your night," said Tuell following the setback. "This was certainly that for us."
 
Embry-Riddle point guard Dalton Barnes notched a double-double with 17 points and 10 assists, but it was Dillon Graham that propelled the Eagles right out the gate.

The former University of Florida transfer tallied 14 of his 17 points in the opening 20 minutes, and lifted the Eagles to a 21-12 advantage with 12 minutes to play in the first half following one of his five three-point field goals in the ball game.

The Eagles' lead grew to as many as 16 before halftime, yet the Sharks battled back to within seven after a Dwayne Gibson block on one end of the floor resulted in a transition lay-in by Edwards. Still, Embry-Riddle entered the locker room in front 44-33 at the break

Nova Southeastern hung around, and cut the deficit back to single-digits following a put-back by Tarin at the 14:57 mark of the second half. However, Embry-Riddle's ball movement and efficient performance from beyond the arc proved too much for the Sharks in their final game of 2016. The Eagles assisted on 27 of their 34 made baskets, and drained 12-of-20 from deep to thwart any momentum gained by Nova Southeastern throughout the contest.

Despite the loss, Felipe Souza provided a welcomed bright spot off the bench with a season-high 12 points and five boards in just 14 minutes of action.

"We like Felipe a lot," said Tuell. "We've always felt like he can contribute to our team more than what he has thus far. Tonight, I think he turned it loose and did a great job for us."

NSU will jump back into league play following the New Year when it travels to face Saint Leo on January 4 at 7:30 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.