Barry Comes to Town For Saturday Doubleheader
TAMPA, Fla. - The University of Tampa men's and women's basketball teams will host Sunshine State Conference opponent Barry University this Saturday at the Bob Martinez Athletics Center.
The women look to add to their five game winning streak against the Buccaneers at the 2 p.m. tip. Tampa enters the contest with an overall record of 13-5 and 6-2 on the conference.
The team is coming off of a 85-61 slaughter of the Palm Beach Atlantic Sailfish this past Wednesday. The Spartans are visibly on an energetic high after taking down previously undefeated and the No.3 team in the nation, Nova Southeastern last week.
Three Spartans are currently scoring in double figures per contest; Taylor McVey leads the squad with 12.2 ppg, followed by Ellen Nurmi and Illyssa Vivo who add 11.3 and 10.3 ppg respectively. Current SSC Player of the Week, Shamika Williams, has been instrumental in UT's last three wins, notching back-to-back double- doubles against Florida Southern and Nova Southeastern.
Barry defeated Florida Tech with a four point advantage earlier this week. The team stands at 11-6 on the season and 4-4 in the SSC. Tyler Hardy leads the Bucs with 19.5 ppg.
Tampa owns the all-time series 39-20. The Spartans defeated the Bucs 69-53 on the road earlier this season.
At 4 p.m., the men hope to bounce back against Barry after two straight losses. Tampa holds an overall record of 11-6 and 4-4 in conference play.
Despite a 29 point performance by Da'Markco Foster, the Spartans suffered a terrible 65-94 loss against Nova Southeastern at the conclusion of last week. Foster leads the team in scoring with 16.6 ppg. Jordan Davis and Eric Moraes each contribute just over 11 points per contest.
Barry has won their last four games, the most recent being a 96-92 advantage over Florida Tech. Balanced scoring has tabbed the Bucs a 14-3 overall record and a 5-3 conference record. Five players average double figure scoring as Juan Ferrales leads the way with 15.9 ppg.
The Spartans lead the all-time series 39-21. Barry trumped Tampa 73-71 earlier this season at home.
Tickets are available at the gate for $5. Children 12-and-under will be admitted free. UT faculty, staff and students are admitted free when displaying a valid Spartan ID card.
UT will offer live stats and a webcast for the match through TampaSpartans.tv.
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