Hot Shooting Rollins Beats Thomas 104-99

Rollins

104 -

99

Thomas

Box Score Highlights

WINTER PARK, Fla. (November 23, 2016) - Rollins shot the lights out in the second half to outlast Thomas University 104-99 Wednesday in Warden Arena.

Jack Fleming was one off the school record for three-pointers in a game, shooting 8-of-10 from beyond the arc en route to a career-high 26 points. Sam Philpott added 20 off the bench while Joey Galvis scored 12. Jeff Merton filled the statsheet with 10 points, seven rebounds, five assists and two steals.

Javoris Cooks poured in 41 points to lead Thomas, shooting 10-of-19 from 3-point range, to go along with 10 rebounds and three assists. Katrell Myers added 25 points off the bench for the Night Hawks.

The victory was a fourth-straight for Rollins and moves its record to 5-1 while Thomas drops to 5-2 on the year.

STANDOUT PERFORMERS
• Javoris Cooks (TU) 41 pts, 10-19 3FG, 7-8 FT, 10 rbs.
• Jack Fleming (RC) 26 pts, 8-10 3FG
• Katrel Myers (TU) 25 pts.
• Sam Philpott (RC) 20 pts, 4 rbs.
• Joey Galvis (RC) 12 pts, 3 steals
• Jeff Merton (RC) 10 pts, 7 rbs, 5 asst.

HIGHLIGHTS AND HALF-BY-HALF ANALYSIS
First Half l Both teams traded baskets over the first four minutes with a Galvis triple giving the Tars a 10-7 lead at the 15:56 mark. The bucket sparked a 15-4 Tars run that put the hosts up 25-11 midway through the first. The Night Hawks closed the gap to 35-31 with 2:11 before halftime, but the Tars again put together a run and led 44-34 at the break.

Second Half l Behind a barrage of three-pointers, four from Cooks alone, Thomas tied the score at 52 with 16:10 to play. Connor Mckim answered with a three of his own, but again TU came back to tie the score. Fleming then found his groove with back-to-back three-pointers before Cooks brought Thomas back and Myers gave the visitors a 62-61 lead with 13:29 to play. A 15-4 Tars run, capped by Fleming's fifth three-pointer, put the Tars back in control 76-65. Thomas got as close as eight midway through the half before Fleming's final triple put the Tars comfortably ahead 100-84 at the 4:26 mark. The field goal would be the Tars final until a Galvis layup with 22 seconds left as Rollins defense stepped up and held off the Night Hawks down the stretch.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
• Field Goal Shooting: Rollins 38-64 (59 percent); TU 34-72 (47 percent)
• 3-point Field Goal Shooting: Rollins 14-29 (48 percent); TU 12-29 (41 percent)
• Free-throws: Rollins 14-18 (78 percent); TU 19-23 (82 percent)
• Rebounding: Rollins 28, Thomas 40
• Turnovers: Rollins 14, Thomas 12
• Rollins bench outscored Thomas 61-40
• Rollins was beat on the offensive glass 15-4; resulting in a 21-0 second chance points advantage for Thomas.

GAME NOTES
• Rollins is now 1-0 all-time against Thomas.
• The Tars have now scored 100-plus points in three straight games for the first time in school history; beating P.R.-Mayaguez 104-79, Florida Southern 102-91 and Thomas 104-99.
• Fleming's 26 points was a new career-high, besting the 10 he scored against Florida Southern on Monday.
• Fleming was just one off the Tars record for three-pointers in a game of nine, set by Alex Blessig against Nova Southeastern on Feb. 18, 2015.

NEXT UP FOR THE TARS
The Tars get back into Sunshine State Conference play on Wednesday, Nov. 30, traveling to Melbourne to face Florida Tech. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Fans can catch all the action live on the Geico Tars Sports Network at RollinsSports.com and locally on 91.5 FM WPRK.