LAKELAND, Fla. – Nova Southeastern had no answer for Florida Southern on the defensive end Saturday, as the Moccasins shot 57.7 percent from the floor en route to a 99-77 victory over the Sharks in Lakeland, Fla. Dwayne Gibson paced Nova Southeastern with 18 points to go along with 17 from Nick Smith, yet leading scorer David Dennis was limited to just 12 points – nearly 10 below his season average. Head coach Jim Crutchfield's club notched the first seven points of the night, but failed to sustain the early momentum as the Mocs salvaged the season split with the Sharks.  

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Score: Florida Southern 99, Nova Southeastern 77
Records: Florida Southern (11-8, 5-6 SSC), Nova Southeastern (12-5, 6-5 SSC)
Location: Jenkins Field House | Lakeland, Fla.
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HOW IT HAPPENED:
1^st Half | Nova Southeastern had the Mocs' faithful fairly silent after a Nick Stampley fastbreak lay-in put the Sharks in front 7-0 just over three minutes into the ball game.  An old-fashioned three-point play by Malik Hardy kept the Sharks in front by a deuce at the 12:23 mark. Unfortunately, that would be the last lead of the night for Nova Southeastern, as Florida Southern would rip off eight straight points before eventually opening up a 47-33 advantage at the break. 

2^nd Half | Similar to the first half, the Sharks came out of the locker room and jumped all over Florida Southern, closing the gap back to 47-40 following a bucket by Smith. The deficit remained just single digits after Gibson sunk one of his three triples in the effort. That margin would soon double, though, on back-to-back treys by the Mocs' Trey Diggs, allowing the home team to coast the rest of the way. 

UP NEXT:
NSU will return to the Rick Case Arena, where it is 10-2 this season, this Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. ET to face Lynn. For complete coverage of the action, follow the Sharks on Twitter @NSU_MBasketball or visit the schedule page on NSUSharks.com.