FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Nova Southeastern has been entrenched in a pair of close battles in its previous two ball games, and can likely expect the trend to continue Wednesday when it welcomes Sunshine State Conference opponent Rollins to the NSU Arena.
 
Amidst a tough-luck, four-game losing streak, Nova Southeastern has dropped its last two ball games by a combined four points after falling 77-74 to Florida Southern this past Saturday. Both the Sharks and Moccasins were knotted up at 68-68 with 3:30 to play, yet head coach Gary Tuell's club finished 1-for-6 from the field down the stretch to dip to 1-6 in the SSC.
 
Despite the defeat, Troy Spears netted a career-high 24 points in the effort, while both Dwayne Gibson and Gerard Tarin each notched double-doubles. Spears currently leads with team with 27 made three-pointers this season and ranks second in scoring with 11.6 points per game.
 
Wednesday night presents another opportunity to get over the hump for the Sharks, and like their most recent matchups with Saint Leo and Florida Southern, Nova Southeastern has repeatedly gone down to the wire with Rollins time and time again over the past few years. The Tars have claimed three of the last four meetings, yet each contest has been decided by an average of 2.3 points during that span including an overtime clash back in February 2015.
 
The Tars' Jeff Merton posted 21 points per game in both ball games against the Sharks in 2015-16, and along with teammate Sam Philpott, has provided the bulk of the scoring for Rollins yet again this season. In 15 starts as a junior, Merton currently averages 14.9 per game, while Philpott has paced the Tars with 15.5 points despite making only six starts.
 
Rollins shook a four-game skid over the weekend after beating Palm Beach Atlantic 59-47 to improve to 8-7 overall, and 2-4 in league action. Defensively, the Tars limited PBA to just 39 percent shooting and forced the Sailfish into 24 turnovers. The 47-point mark allowed by Rollins' defense set a new season low, and was 13 points fewer than the previous mark allowed against Clark Atlanta on November 11.
 
David Halberstam will have the call live from NSU Arena. For complete coverage of the action, log onto NSUSharks.com or follow the Sharks on Twitter @NSU_MBasketball.