DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Nova Southeastern stepped off the bus at the ICI Center and never fully found its footing against a desperate Embry-Riddle squad Wednesday night. The Eagles tallied the first six points of the contest before eventually running away with a 92-81 victory over the Sharks. David Dennis recorded a team-high 24 points to go along with seven rebounds and seven assists, while Malik Hardy and Nick Smith each chipped in with 13 points apiece. Field goals proved tough to come by, though, as head coach Jim Crutchfield's club was limited to just 35.5 percent shooting in the effort.
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Score: Embry-Riddle 92, Nova Southeastern 81
Records: Embry-Riddle (7-9, 1-7 SSC), Nova Southeastern (10-4, 4-4 SSC)
Location: ICI Center | Daytona Beach, Fla.
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HOW IT HAPPENED:
1^st Half | Embry-Riddle raced out to a 6-0 cushion until Isaac White ended the game-opening 4:19 scoreless drought with a jumper on a feed from Eddie Puisis. Despite a quick five points from White, the sluggish start continued as the Eagles stretched the margin to 16-5 less than eight minutes in on a three-pointer by Koby Carlton. The Sharks trailed by a manageable 18-10 deficit, yet surrendered a 9-0 run in a span of 1:50 to fall behind 27-10 midway through the half. Hardy capped a 12-4 spurt to bring Nova Southeastern back to within single-digits. Behind 59.4 percent shooting, though, Embry-Riddle held a strong 44-31 advantage heading into the locker room.

2^nd Half | The Sharks were in need of a fast start, but instead saw the Eagles reel off nine unanswered to bust up a 22-point lead in the opening moments of the second half. Embry-Riddle's lead hovered around 20 for much of the half before Nova Southeastern ripped off eight straight points, including triples by Puisis and Dwayne Gibson. After the Eagles expanded their advantage back to 16, Dennis narrowed the gap to as close to nine prior to the final media timeout. However, the comeback attempt showed up a bit too late as Embry-Riddle salted the game away at the line in the final minutes.  

BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:

• Wednesday's defeat marks the first time this season Nova Southeastern has dropped consecutive ball games.
• The Sharks' 31 first-half points were the fewest in any first half through their first 14 contests. 

STATS OF THE NIGHT:

• Hardy finished the night 3-of-6 from beyond the arc. The rest of the team, however, combined to shoot a mere 6-of-31 from deep.
• Dennis poured in 17 of his 24 points after halftime, giving him eight 20-plus point performances in his last nine games.
• Despite the setback, the Sharks won the turnover battle by a 22-14 margin.
• Embry-Riddle owned the glass, outrebounding Nova Southeastern 46-35.
• Embry-Riddle's Rudy Bibb-Boyd registered a game-high 25 points, including 5-of-9 from three.

UP NEXT:
NSU will look to shake its recent two-game slide when it returns home this Saturday to face Saint Leo at 4 p.m. ET. For complete coverage of the action, follow the Sharks on Twitter @NSU_MBasketball or visit the schedule page on NSUSharks.com.