ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (January 6, 2024) - Rollins suffered a 92-76 defeat at the hands of the Eckerd Tritons on Saturday in St. Petersburg. The loss moves Rollins to 4-9 (1-3 SSC) while Eckerd improves to 8-6 (3-3 SSC).
The first segment of the game was equally matched as the two teams traded buckets up until the first media timeout. A
Sergey Grishaev free throw gave the Tars their first lead of the game, followed by a layup from Jaden Fraier and a Grishaev dunk to put Rollins up 11-6.
They would maintain a lead until a pair of George Kimble free throws put the advantage back to the Tritons near the ten-minute mark.
Cody Potter would finish in the paint on the next possession, but then the Tars would go scoreless for more than three minutes. In that time, Eckerd built an eight-point lead.
The Tritons would hold a 6-8 point lead for most of the half until a Frazier layup, followed by a Potter triple, brought the lead down to 31-28. Minutes later, Eckerd would score the last seven points of the half to take a 40-32 lead into the break.
Rollins shot 44% in the first half, but only 1-7 from three. Eckerd was only 32% successful from the floor, but they pulled down 33 rebounds, giving them plenty of second-chance opportunities. They also went to the line 15 times, knocking down 11 free throws.
Braxton Barnhizer did his best to keep Rollins in the game early into the second as he scored the first six points of the half. Unfortunately, no one else would score until Potter hit a three at the 14-minute mark, making the score 57-41.
Potter would convert a four-point play just a minute later, but Eckerd had already established their lead, and refused to give anything away. Rollins could not get any closer than 13 in the final 15 minutes of the game, and would wind up falling 92-76.
Potter was the bright spot on offense for Rollins, leading the team with 23 points on 8-10 shooting, including 6-8 from three.
Cade Long was solid as well, scoring twelve points to go with eight assists.
Next up for Rollins is a matchup with the #2 team in the country. The Tars will host the Nova Southeastern Sharks in Winter Park on Wednesday, January 10. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 pm.
