#11 Rollins

62 -

67

Eckerd

Box Score Highlights

WINTER PARK, Fla. (December 12, 2015) - The 11^th-ranked Tars controlled much of the game on Saturday afternoon but a late run by Eckerd paired with foul trouble eventually led to the upset, as Rollins fell to the Tritons, 67-62.

The Tars fall to 9-1 overall and 2-1 in the SSC while Eckerd improves to 9-1 and takes over lead in conference at 4-0.

As a team, Rollins shot 24-55 from the field but hit just 27.3 percent from beyond the arc, nearly 14 percent lower than their season average. The Tritons shot 44.2 percent for the game and went 17-25 from the line compared to Rollins who went to the line just 10 times, making eight.

The Tars starters accounted from all but two points in the loss, led by Deion Clark's 21. The junior transfer shot 8-11 and also grabbed four rebounds. Senior Sharif Almulla finished with 13 points, 11 coming in the second half, while Mike Bedulskis chipped in 12 with five boards. James Ferrell added six points and a game high four assists.

For Eckerd, Drushaun McLaurn led all scorers with 27 points, 24 coming in the second half, on 9-12 shooting to go along with seven rebounds. Trevon Young had 12 points and five boards while Kevin Walsh added 11 on 3-8 from three.

The first half was a back and forth battle that featured five ties and four lead changes. Rollins held their biggest lead, 16-10, at the 12:14 mark while the Tritons held a pair of one-point advantages.

With the scored tied a 25-25 with 3:33 left in the half, the Tars closed with a 5-1 run to take 30-26 lead heading into intermission.

The Tars exploded out of the break, pushing their lead to as much as 16 just over five minutes into the second period after a 16-4 run.

Eckerd would slowly chip away at the Rollins lead after Tars' second leading scorer, Jeff Merton, picked up his fourth foul and was forced to sit with 12:51 left.

With Merton on the bench, the Tritons went on an 18-9 run to pull within three at 55-52 at the 5:06 mark.

Eckerd would take a two point lead with 3:40 left but Almulla answered with a driving layup after being fouled and hit the free throw to give Rollins the lead the ensuing possession, 58-57.

Down two again a minute later, Clark hit a pair of free throws to even the game at 60-60 but McLaurn and the Tritons were too much down the stretch, securing the upset.

The Tars will be back in action on Friday, Dec. 18 in game one of the South Point Holiday Classic. Rollins will play Tarleton State at 4 p.m. EST. Fans can listen to all the action live on the Geico Tars Sports Network on RollinsSports.com