BOCA RATON, Fla. – For just the second time in the past 17 meetings, NSU dropped a decision versus SSC foe Lynn. In a game that featured 10 lead changes, the Sharks cut a fourth quarter deficit to just three points with 1:33 to play, but ultimately fell just short on the road Wednesday night at the de Hoernle Sports & Cultural Center, 78-71.

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
FINAL: L, 71-78
RECORDS: Nova Southeastern University Sharks (6-7, 2-4 SSC), Lynn Fighting Knights (9-5, 4-2 SSC)
LOCATION: de Hoernle Sports and Cultural Center | Boca Raton, Fla.
FOLLOW US: @NSUSHARKS on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube

HOW IT HAPPENED:
 
1ST QUARTER | It was an explosive offensive outburst for both teams in the first. After trading early scores, Hailey Conley and Iva Ilic knocked down back-to-back triples to put the Sharks up 10-4 at the first media time out. The long ball was working early as Janiffer Rodriguez joined in on the action, extending the lead to seven, 13-6. After the Sharks knocked down their fifth consecutive basket to make it 18-12, the Fighting Knights would answer back, evening the score at 20-20, with 2:08 to play. With just six seconds to play in the quarter, Jordan Tully's late layup gave the Sharks a slim two point lead after 10 minutes of play, 27-25. 

2ND QUARTER | It was the polar opposite for both squads in an offensively challenged second quarter that featured only 15 total points, with NSU mustering just six in the entire frame. The lone field goal for the Sharks came off a three-point score by Conley at the 6:47 mark, giving the Sharks a 30-27 advantage. While the Sharks held the Fighting Knights without a field goal until the 3:03 mark, four points at the line had the home team up 31-30. The Sharks would score three more points via the free throw but a late basket with just 22 seconds to play gave Lynn a slim 34-33 lead going into halftime.

3RD QUARTER | The Fighting Knights came out of the break extending the gap to six points following a 6-1 run. A layup by Ilic at the 7:31 mark trimmed it to four, then a minute later Makenna Drabick converted from downtown to put the Sharks within three, trailing 42-39. After Ilic scored her fifth and sixth points of the quarter, Lynn responded with a mini 4-0 run to close the quarter, up 51-44.

4TH QUARTER | Just like the first quarter, both squads had little issue putting the ball in the net after a combined 54 points were scored in the final frame. Lynn would grab their largest lead of the game at nine at the 8:27 mark, but NSU would trim the lead back to three after a layup by Sarah Kelly to make it 56-53. With just under two minutes to play, Lynn would extend the lead back to 69-61. From there, the Sharks continued to chip away making a hard-fought push late in the fourth when Drabick swished a three, then immediately forced a turnover on the inbounds and a quick layup by Conley made it 69-66, with just 1:33 to play. Unfortunately for the scrappy road Sharks, Lynn would go on an 8-2 run pushing the score to 77-68 with just 28 seconds to play. Ultimately the score would end 78-71 after a late free throw by Kelly and basket by Drabick. 

INSIDE THE STATS:

• Ilic led the team by scoring 15 points for the second consecutive game, making six of her 15 field goal attempts, including two from beyond the arc. She had nine points at halftime and also dished out a team-high three assists to go along with two steals.
• After playing her first 52 games for the Sharks without a double-double, Conley has now posted two in a row. She scored 13 points on 5-of-11 shooting and collected 11 rebounds, one shy of the career-high she set on Saturday at Florida Southern, with seven board coming in the first half. Conley also made a pair of 3-pointers and had a pair of steals.
• Drabick reached double figures for the first time as a member of the Sharks, with 11 points on three field goals, including two from long distance.
• Tully was the fourth Shark to reach a double-digit point total. She scored 10 points on a near-perfect 3-of-4 from the field and added four more points at the charity stripe.
• The offense's 27 first-quarter points on 10-for-14 shooting from the field and 5-of-7 from downtown (both 71 percent) represented an opening-frame season-high. The Sharks were just 14-for-46 the remainder of the game (30.4 percent).
• NSU left 10 points at the line, finishing 14-of-24 (58 percent)

UP NEXT: 
The Sharks will head back to the friendly confines of the Rick Case arena as they look to get back in the win column against Florida Tech, tip-off set for 2:00 p.m.

SHARKS ON SOCIAL MEDIA:
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