FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – No. 6 Nova Southeastern scored the first 15 points of the contest, and never looked back, rolling to a wire-to-wire, 95-78 win at home against Palm Beach Atlantic on Wednesday. Sekou Sylla led the way for the Sharks with a game-high 23 points and 14 rebounds, while the NSU defense turned 32 Sailfish turnovers into 31 points in a ball game that was never truly close.

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Score: No. 6 Nova Southeastern 95, Palm Beach Atlantic 78
Records: No. 6 Nova Southeastern (4-0, 2-0 SSC), Palm Beach Atlantic (3-4, 1-1 SSC)
Location: Rick Case Arena | Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
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HOW IT HAPPENED:
1^st Half | RJ Sunahara tallied the first six points of the night, while Kobe Rodgers collected a steal and slam, as the Sharks opened 7-of-9 from the field to capture a comfortable 15-0 lead just 4:22 into the Sunshine State Conference matchup. A Rodgers three-pointer stretched NSU's cushion to 17 at 25-8 with 12:07 still to play in the half, which is where it would remain following a steal and lay-in by Mike Moore at the 7:53 mark. The lead was soon cut back to 13 until Rodgers fired a between-the-legs pass while falling out of bounds to Sylla for an old-fashioned, three-point play. The margin would get as close as 11 on two separate occasions, yet NSU would hold the Sailfish scoreless for the final 2:16 of the half to head into the locker room ahead 46-31.

2^nd Half | Similarly to how they blitzed PBA at the start of the first half, the Sharks needed just 46 seconds to pour in five quick points out of the break to extend the lead to 20. The advantage sat at 66-48 following consecutive buckets by Nick Smith and Kaine McColley before reaching as many as 21 thanks to a pair of Sunahara free throws with 8:16 to go. Smith scored three of his 11 second-half points to keep the margin at 20, leaving Sylla to provide one last exclamation point in the final minute with a left-handed throwdown.

BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:

• NSU has yet to trail in each of its last two games.
• NSU's 95 points nearly matched its season average of 96.5, which ranks among the Top-5 in NCAA Division II.
• The Sharks have now outscored their first four opponents by an average of 19.5 points per game.
• Sylla has notched double-doubles in three of the first four contests this season.

STATS OF THE NIGHT:

• Sunahara filled up the stat sheet with 22 points, five boards, four assists and four blocks in 33 minutes
• Smith also hit double figures with 17 points to go along with a game-high nine assists. He has now combined for 19 assists in the past two games.
• NSU shot 46.3 percent from the field despite a 4-of-20 effort from beyond the arc.
• Sixty-two of the Sharks' 95 points came in the paint.

UP NEXT:
The Sharks will look to improve to 3-0 in SSC play when they travel to St. Petersburg, Fla. this Saturday to take on Eckerd. For complete coverage of the action, visit the schedule page on NSUSharks.com or follow the Sharks on Twitter @NSU_MBasketball.