Tampa Comes Up Short in Loss to Lynn

Box score

TAMPA, Fla. - The University of Tampa (4-15, 0-9 SSC) men's basketball team stayed within striking distance but was unable to overcome Lynn University (11-10, 4-5 SSC) as it suffered a 68-59 loss to its Sunshine State Conference opponent on Saturday at the Bob Martinez Athletics Center.

With Lynn leading for the majority of the first half, the Spartans took its first and only lead of the contest at 26-24 with 3:53 to go until halftime. The Fighting Knights answered with a 10-0 run to end the half as it took a 34-26 advantage to the break.

Tampa cut the Lynn lead to five points on three occasions in the second half, but was unable to get any closer to its opponent. Lynn connected on a 3-pointer and sunk 4-of-4 free throws in the final two minutes to quell any Spartan comeback bid.

Head coach Richard Schmidt received a spark off his bench from freshman point guard Terrell Pritchett, who finished with a team-high 16 points. It also represented a new career-high for the Haines City, Fla., resident. Ashton Graham joined Pritchett in double figures with 12 points.

Callum Townsend added a team-high seven rebounds for the Spartans, who outrebounded its opponent 38-31.

The Fighting Knights connected on seven 3-pointers, including three from its leading scorer and Tampa native Josh Garcia, who finished with a game-high 24 points.

The Spartans will travel to Winter Park, Fla., for a Wednesday night matchup at Rollins College. Gametime is 7:30 p.m. Live stats and a webcast will be available through tampaspartans.com.

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