Spartans Hold on to Defeat Saint Leo

TAMPA, Fla. - The University of Tampa men's basketball team picked up a critical Sunshine State Conference victory with a 77-67 victory over Saint Leo University. The Spartans are now 9-2 on the year and 3-0 in SSC play. The Lions drop to 6-6 and 0-2 in league play.

After trailing by a score of 16-12, the Spartans scored eight straight points and never trailed again. The Lions were unable to break UT as the lead did not get closer than three points for the remainder of the first half.

Saint Leo threatened the Tampa lead at the beginning of the second half, scoring the first five points of the half. After the back-and-forth game was tied at 39-39 with 15:43 remaining, UT scored six unanswered points while Saint Leo was only able to get within four points of the Tampa lead.

The duo of Jeremy Black and Chris Evans proved to be the difference for Tampa as they combined for 47 points and 20 rebounds. Evans led all scorers with 28 points while Black turned in a hefty 19 points and 16 rebounds.

Evans also added a team-high five blocked shots as he connected on five three-pointers. Rashad Callaway and Johnathan Ball each had five assists as Evans recorded six of his team high seven steals in the first half.

Ball and Callaway also registered double figures in points as each had 12.

The Spartans finished the game while outshooting the Lions 46.9 to 41.1 percent. Tampa also hit 10 three-pointers and shot 84 percent from the free-throw line.

Tampa now looks forward to a meeting in Melbourne with undefeated Florida Tech on Saturday in an SSC showdown. While both teams are perfect in league play, Florida Tech is 11-0 with a Wednesday matchup with Rollins pending.