WINTER PARK, Fla. (February 28, 2024) - Men's basketball dropped their fourth consecutive contest no Wednesday with a 106-84 loss at the hands of the Florida Southern Mocs. The Tars now stand at 8-18, 5-14 SSC while the Mocs improve to 21-8, 15-5 SSC.
The Tars received three solid efforts from
Matheus Silveira (23 points),
Kyle Marion (22 points), and
Sergey Grishaev (19 points), but no other player cracked double digits. Meanwhile, Southern had six players in double figures led by Luke Anderson's game-high 26.
The game was tight for the first ten minutes of the first half as neither team held more than a two-possession lead. The momentum seemed to shift for Rollins when Anderson knocked down to threes on consecutive possessions to put the Mocs ahead by eight.
The lead would for to 14 for a bit, but Rollins attempted a come back thanks to multiple buckets from Marion and a three-point play from Silveira to make it 40-34. Southern continued to operate efficiently on offense while the Tars did not make a shot from the floor after
Michael Niemann's triple with 2:32 to go. They would head into halftime down 57-44.
Rollins held the Mocs to just two points in the first three minutes of the second half while chopping the lead back down to single digits. Unfortunately, they would not get any closer than nine for the remainder of the game. After Grishaev knocked down a pair of free throws at 14:02, the Tars hit a three-minute cold streak of their own.
The last ten minutes of the game saw Florida Southern run the clock and continue to score. They would end up with a 106-84 win.
Rollins actually had a higher field goal percentage (44.1% to 43.5%) for the game, but a massive 60-35 rebound advantage for the Mocs proved to be a difference maker.
The Tars will wrap up their season at home on Saturday, March 2nd against Barry. Tipoff is scheduled for 4:00 pm. Be sure to arrive early as the coaching staff will honor the five seniors in their final home game before tip.
