FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Knotted up at 89-89 with 2:28 to play, No. 17 Nova Southeastern closed on a 14-4 run to upset No. 12 Barry in an electrifying atmosphere in the Rick Case Arena Wednesday night.
David Dennis poured in a season-high 30 points to go along with 20 points and 15 rebounds from
Mark Matthews, while
Mikkel Kolstad tallied eight of the Sharks' final nine points down the stretch to put the game on ice.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Score: No. 17 Nova Southeastern 103, No. 12 Barry 93
Records: Nova Southeastern (4-0, 1-0 SSC), Barry (4-1, 0-1 SSC)
Location: The Rick Case Arena | Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Get Social: Twitter - @NSU_MBasketball | Instagram - @NSU_MBasketball
HOW IT HAPPENED:
1
st Half | The Sharks grabbed control early, jumping out to a 15-6 advantage following a Matthews lay-up just over three minutes into the contest. As expected, Barry weathered the storm, though, and pulled back even at 18-18 on one of four three-pointers hit by Daniel Mortensen. The Buccaneers climbed in front by a bucket at the 11:41 mark, yet Nova Southeastern would answer with an 18-3 spurt to capture its largest lead of the half at 36-23. The Sharks' offense would stall, however, recording just five free throws over the final 6:28 of the half, allowing Barry to head into the break with a narrow 42-41 edge.
2
nd Half | The Bucs appeared on the verge of blowing the ball game wide open on two separate occasions midway through the second half. A David Moya triple pushed Barry ahead 72-64 before a pair of treys from Kolstad and
Dwayne Gibson, followed by two Dennis free throws, evened the contest back up at the 9:17 mark.
Eddie Puisis then traded threes with Mortensen, sparking a six-minute stretch in which the lead changed a total of nine times. Dennis sunk a lay-up to break the tie with 2:28 remaining, as Puisis and Kolstad provided the daggers to finally give the Sharks enough breathing room to secure the win in both teams' Sunshine State Conference opener.
UP NEXT:
Nova Southeastern will hit the road for the first time this season when it travels to face Embry-Riddle this Saturday at 6 p.m. For complete coverage of the action, follow the Sharks on Twitter @NSU_MBasketball or visit the schedule page on NSUSharks.com.
