FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The No. 1 Nova Southeastern Sharks men's basketball team dropped just their seventh home loss in the three years of the Jim Crutchfield era on Saturday at Rick Case Arena. The Rollins Tars pulled ahead in the final minute for the sixth lead change, holding on for the 86-85 Sunshine State Conference win. Despite 28 and 27-point efforts by Mark Matthews and Mikkel Kolstad, Rollins limited the NSU offense to deal the Sharks their first loss of the year.

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Score: Rollins 86, No. 1 Nova Southeastern 85
Records: Rollins (6-3, 2-1 SSC), No. 1 Nova Southeastern (6-1, 2-1 SSC)
Location: Rick Case Arena | Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
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HOW IT HAPPENED:
1^st Half | In an unusual reversal, it was Rollins' Brooks Cluxton who made a quick steal in the opening five seconds to set up a Connor Mckim three, and kick off a Tars advantage that would cover most of the first six minutes. Matthews provided the Sharks their first lead with 13:51 to go in the first on a Matt Weir-assisted paint jumper. The Sharks outscored the Tars 13-8 over the next two-and-a-half minutes to claim a five-point advantage. However, Rollins spent the next 10 minutes holding the NSU offense in check, launching a 17-4 run that not only granted them the lead, but also a double-digit advantage at 42-32 and 1:36 remaining in the half. The Sharks were saved from a double-figure halftime deficit by a Matthews jumper with :44 to go, heading into the break down 44-35. Closing the opening period in another norm reversal, it was Rollins that produced a 16-2 advantage on fast break scoring. The Tars held NSU to just 38.2 percent shooting in the first half, while hitting 64.3 percent on their end.

2^nd Half | The Sharks wasted little time chipping away at the Tars lead after the break, as Matthews and Kolstad teamed to score 9-of-11 points in a second half opening gambit – trimming the deficit to two points at 15:10. A tug-of-war of runs by both teams culminated in the game's sixth tie at 9:42. It was short-lived as Rollins countered with a Cluxton fast break layup and a Tars run that reached an eight-point lead thanks to Dayton Gumm's three-pointer with 7:03 to go. Again the Sharks battled back, and Connor Zinaich capped the rally for the lead by putting back his own miss to put NSU on top 74-73 at 4:44. A Mckim three edged Rollins back ahead, but Nick Smith scored five consecutive points to earn a foothold in front for the Sharks with 1:26 to go – for the last time in Saturday's league contest. NSU kept it a one-possession game and Kolstad nailed a long-ranger to knot the score at 82-82, but the Tars used the remaining clock well – Jakobi Bonner pulling up for the lead with three ticks to go. An errant Kolstad inbound went out of bounds off Weir to seal the Tars 86-85 win.

INSIDE THE STATS:

• In total, the score was tied nine times and changed hands six times.
• Contrary to the norm, the Sharks bench was stifled on Saturday – Rollins leading bench scoring 29-14.
• Mark Matthews had his fifth 20-point effort of the year, notching a season-high 27 points, topping his previous best mark of 24, which he had already reached four times.
• Coming off his first game as a Shark without a three-pointer on four or more attempts, Mikkel Kolstad had his best game in a Shark uniform, setting career bests in points (28), field goals (10), three-pointers (8), assists (5) and steals (5).
• As a team, the Sharks shot under 50 percent for the first time this season and under 60 percent for the first time at home, settling for just 45.2 percent. They also had their lowest rebounding total of the year, 10 below the previous nadir of 35 at Tampa, and also went to the line a season-low nine times, compared to the 22 free throws taken by the Tars.
• Defensively, they allowed their highest field goal percentage of the season, at 60.8 percent, more than 14 percentage points better than the previous best by an opponent at the Rick Case Arena this year.

 
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:

• The last opponent to shoot 60 percent or better from the field for a full game was Florida Tech, who made 61 percent of their field goals on Jan. 22, 2014.
• Kolstad and Matthews scored the second and third-most individual points this season, behind only Nick Smith's 29 in the 154-85 victory over Clayton State on Nov. 30. Matthews also tied the season-best 12 field goals that Lukas Speidel made in the season opener 130-62 win against Staten Island.
• Kolstad's eight three-pointers is tied for second-best performance in the program's last 25 years, matching the total that Eddie Puisis had in 12 attempts during last season's 97-91 overtime win at Tampa to secure the SSC regular season title – Only John Brooks made more in a single game; he shot 9-for-14 on Dec. 18, 2010 against Franklin Pierce.

UP NEXT:
NSU will close out its 2019-ending homestand with two non-conference tilts next week at Rick Case Arena, welcoming Cedarville to the Shark Tank on Dec. 19, followed by 25th-ranked Dominican (N.Y.) on Dec. 21. For complete coverage of the action, visit the schedule page on NSUSharks.com or follow the Sharks on Twitter @NSU_MBasketball.