WINTER PARK, Fla. (February 12, 2020) – Rollins had fifth-ranked Florida Southern on the ropes the entire night, but a late Mocs run sunk the Tars upset bid by a score of 77-72.
The score was tied at 70 with 1:50 to play, but Rollins missed its next three from the field and FSC took advantage at the free throw line down the stretch.
The Tars fall to 12-11 overall and 6-9 in Sunshine State Conference play. FSC remained on top of the standings with its 10th-straight win, moving to 21-2 overall and 13-2 in the SSC.
Jakobi Bonner led the way with 22 points on 7-of-13 shooting with three from beyond the arc. The senior also grabbed six rebounds. Hutton Yenor added 15 points while Brooks Cluxton earned 14 points and a team-high nine rebounds.
Jalyn Hinton and Brandon Carroll both scored 16 to lead the Mocs. Brett Hanson scored 15 while E.J. Dambreville added 13 points and nine rebounds.
The Tars held Florida Southern to 16 points below its season average. Rollins shot 42 percent from the field with FSC connecting on 48 percent. Rollins turned it over 14 times to Southern's seven, but won the glass, 38-33.
Rollins trailed by five after the first four minutes before rattling off an 11-0 run and grabbing a 16-10 lead at the 12:20 mark of the first. The Tars maintained the advantage until the Mocs got hot from outside and swung momentum back its way, taking a 29-24 advantage.
Rollins was down 31-26 with 4:52 left in the half and finished on a 14-2 run to nab a 40-33 lead at halftime. Five different Tars scored during the span.
After going up by 11 early in the second, Rollins saw FSC slowly start to come back until a Jair Rodgers three-pointer knotted the score at 50 with 11:41 to play. Layups by Yenor and Bonner kept the Tars in control and Yenor added a three-pointer to put the Tars back ahead by seven.
Cluxton got a pair a the line with 4:55 left to give Rollins a 67-62 lead but FSC came back with an 8-0 run and went up 70-67 with 2:09 on the clock. Yenor hit from deep after a Mocs timeout that tied the score at 70.
Rollins couldn't capitalize on a Mocs turnover and FSC made them pay as Carroll drained a three-pointer in the corner with 53 seconds left, giving the Mocs a 73-70 lead.
The Tars were off the mark on two chances its trip down the floor and Dambreville made it a five point game with a pair of free throws.
Rollins turned it over and was forced to quickly foul Jack Rauch. He missed them both at the line and Bonner cut the deficit to just three with 12 seconds to play. Dambreville, however, came up big at the line with nine seconds left and ice the game for the Mocs.
Rollins will look to bounce back on Saturday, February 15 hosting Barry at Warden Arena. Tip off is slated for 4 p.m. Fans can follow the action live on the Tars Sports Network at RollinsSports.com and locally on 91.5 FM WPRK.
