Flagler Takes Regional Matchup Over Spartans

ST. LEO, Fla. - The University of Tampa men's basketball dropped game one of the Saint Leo Crossover Classic to Flagler College in a matchup of South Region foes.

INSIDE THE MATCHUP: 
Final Score: Flagler 89, Tampa 72
Records: University of Tampa Spartans (0-3), Flagler College Saints (2-2)
Location: Marion Bowman Activities Center || St. Leo, Fla. 
All-Time Series: Tampa still holds the advantage in the all-time series with a record of 60-21.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

1st Half | The Spartans and Saints offenses came out of their locker rooms on the attack. The Saints took 14 shots from three-point range, knocking down six of them. Tampa forward, Martin Lakovic, attempted the only three-pointer of the half for the Spartans of which he made.  Senior guard Vincent Biffle led the Spartans in scoring in the first half with 12 points, going 6-for-9 from the field. Biffle also led the team in first-half rebounds as he totaled 5 boards. Tampa also crashed the glass as they outrebounded Flagler 22 to 16. The lead continued to alternate as there were 10 lead changes, but Flagler came out of the half on top with a one-point lead. || Flagler 39-38

2nd Half | Despite only being down by one at the half, the Spartans hit a cold stretch shooting the ball in the second half, as they went 9-for-30 (30%) from the field, and shot 2-for-7 from three-point range (29%). Biffle continued his solid shooting performance, as he finished the game with 25 points (leading all scorers), and 8 rebounds. However, the efforts of senior guards Mekhi Biffle, and Pat Bacon (who contributed 16 points and 6 rebounds) were not enough to slow down the Saints offense as they went 5-for-9 from 3-point range. In the end, the shooting outburst from Flagler and the offensive drought for Tampa in the second half proved to be enough. || Flagler 89-72

INSIDE THE STATS:

• Three Spartans finished in double-figures: Biffle (25), Pat Bacon (16), and Lakovic (12).
• Biffle led both teams in scoring with 25 points, 8 rebounds, and 2 steals.

BEYOND THE BOX:

• Bacon has scored in double-digits figures for his third game in a row.
• Biffle has scored double-digit figures for the second consecutive game.

UP NEXT: The University of Tampa Men's Basketball team will return to Saint Leo for game two of the Saint Leo Crossover Classic on Sunday. The game will tip-off at noon against Georgia College.

Tickets: General admission ticket prices for all Tampa regular season athletic events are $5. Youth (ages 12 and under) are admitted free of charge. UT students and faculty/staff are admitted free with a valid Spartan ID.

Follow UT Athletics: @TampaSpartans on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and YouTube.

Text Alerts: UT also offers a free text messaging service that sends text alerts following all Spartan events. To sign up, please register at www.tampaspartans.com.

Front Row: Download the official app of UT Athletics on the Apple or Android store. Look for Tampa Spartans Front Row app to receive notifications from your favorite Spartan teams. The app is completely free.