Spartans Hang Tough Before Falling at Florida Tech

Box score

MELBOURNE, Fla. - The University of Tampa (4-14, 0-8) men's basketball team fell to Florida Tech (14-3, 6-2 SSC) despite a valiant effort that nearly netted the Spartans it first Sunshine State Conference victory. UT fell by a final tally of 59-52.

In a defensive battle, the teams went to halftime tied at 22-22 and the second half remained just as tight as the first. Neither team led by more than seven points and the Spartans held a late lead at 45-43 with 6:15 to play.

In front of a crowd of 967 fans, the Panthers used its Clemente Center advantage to go on a 7-0 run to grab a 50-45 lead with 4:26 on the clock. Tech would hold on as it connected on all four free throws attempted in the final minutes.

Ashton Graham led the Spartans with a team-high 24 points as he was the lone UT player in double figures. Stefon Barfield grabbed a team-leading eight rebounds for head coach Richard Schmidt's squad.

Tampa returns home where it will host Lynn University on Saturday at the Bob Martinez Athletics Center. The game is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Live stats and a video webcast will be available through TampaSpartans.tv.

Fans may also follow University of Tampa athletics on Twitter (www.twitter.com/utspartans) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/tampaspartans). UT also offers blAst, a free text messaging service that sends text alerts following all Spartan events. To sign up, please register at www.tampaspartans.com.