NSU AUDIO | FSC STREAMING | LIVE STATS
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The No. 18 Nova Southeastern University women's basketball team concludes regular season action Saturday night, taking on Florida Southern in Lakeland at 5:30 p.m.
The Sharks (22-4, 13-2 SSC) and Mocs (22-4, 11-4 SSC) each have already earned their Sunshine State Conference postseason slot, regardless of Saturday's result. NSU is the league's top seed and FSC will be No. 3. However, South Region rankings are still up for grabs. NSU stayed pat at third in the latest official NCAA list, behind Union and Benedict, and FSC moved up a slot to sixth.
Earlier this season, on a live ESPN3 national broadcast, the two teams battled toe-to-toe for 45 minutes, with NSU prevailing on their home floor after that five minutes of extra time, 81-79.
Molly Blomer (Sr., West Chester, Ohio) had a career afternoon, burying six 3-pointers towards a new standard of 21 points, trailing only her teammate
Kayla Wright's (Jr., Lauderhill, Fla.) 22.
The Mocs have won four in a row and six of seven, and with a win would tie for second place but get the third seed because they were swept by Florida Tech. It will be Senior Night for the squad and three players, including leading scorer/rebounder/shooter Mariah Harris. Head coach Betsy Harris, no relation, is 35-18 in her second season at the school.
LeAnn Freeland of the Sharks is now 118-35 at the school and 207-70 overall, and last Saturday's SSC title-clinching win was the 300th in program history. It is NSU's third regular season title in four years, and the team's defense of back-to-back tournament titles begins next Wednesday at home at the NSU Arena. Their opponent will be determined following the result of Saint Leo and Tampa on Saturday. If Saint Leo wins, they are the eighth seed and NSU's opponent. If they fall to Tampa, Lynn earns the final slot and will come to Fort Lauderdale for the quarterfinal matchup.
A win Saturday would also equal the best in-conference record for a Sharks' team, matching the 2007-08 squad. Again, game time is 5:30 p.m., which will follow the conclusion of all the other games involving conference teams.
