MELBOURNE, Fla. – It was a tale of two halves as Florida Tech shot 51.6 percent (16-31) and converted 11 Flagler College turnovers into 19 points to rally to a 76-73 win in a non-conference men's basketball game Tuesday night at the Clemente Center.
Florida Tech won its fifth game in a row to improve to 5-1. Flagler had its three-game winning streak snapped and fell to 3-2.
The Panthers sank 78.9 percent (15-19) of their free throws in the second half and they held a 24-12 advantage in points in the paint. Florida Tech out-scored Flagler in the second 20 minutes 50-37.
The exact opposite happened in the first half. Flagler shot 51.6 percent (16-31) and forced nine Florida Tech turnovers, which were cashed in for 14 points. The Saints defense limited the Panthers to 36 percent (9-25) shooting from the field. Flagler out-scored Florida Tech 24-12 in the paint.
"We really let one slip away tonight," said head coach
Chad Warner. "Credit Florida Tech for battling back from down 13. We didn't show the type of poise and composure that winning teams display."
Vaughn McCall scored 13 of his team-high 20 points in the first half.
Gedi Juozapaitis added 16 points and six rebounds while
Damerit Brown chipped in with 13 points. Brown sank three 3-pointers.
DeMari Davis contributed 12 points and eight rebounds.
Derek Murphy led the Panthers with a game-high 23 points and he completed the double-double with a game-high 11 rebounds. Murphy made 9-of-12 from the free throw line. Antonis Pefanis also recorded a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds. RJ Coil just missed a double-double with 15 points and nine rebounds. Cory Kaplan tacked on 10 points.
Flagler held a 36-26 lead at the half and had a 13-point lead early in the second half.
After a
Kris Totoris trey gave Flagler a 45-36 lead with 15:02 left to go, the Saints were held scoreless for the next 2-minutes and 5-seconds. During that stretch, the Panthers went on a 14-0 run to take a 50-45 lead.
The score would be tied seven times, the last one was on Brown's 3-pointer to knot the game at 66.
With 3:23 left, Murphy was fouled and he sank both free throws to give Florida Tech a lead they would not relinquish. The Saints got as close as one point on three different occasions after falling behind because of Murphy's free throws.
"Our guys were disappointed with themselves and will learn from it," added Warner. "We have to get back to work because we face a very good Clayton State team on Saturday."
Flagler opens Peach Belt Conference play against the aforementioned Clayton State University on Saturday (Dec. 1) at 3:30 p.m. at Flagler Gymnasium.
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