Tampa Drops Contest to Washburn In Cruzin' Classic Tournament

FORT LAUDERDALE, FL - The University of Tampa Men's Basketball team traveled to Fort Lauderdale to take on Washburn University in the 2019 Cruzin' Classic holiday tournament.

INSIDE THE MATCHUP: 

Final Score: Washburn 87, Tampa 73 
Records: Tampa Spartans (3-9, 0-4 SSC), Washburn Ichabods (6-4, 1-1 MIAA)
Location: Broward County Convention Center || Fort Lauderdale, FL 
All-Time Series: Tampa now trails in the all-time series by a record of 0-1. 

HOW IT HAPPENED:

1st Half || Tampa started the game off hot, as they opened up the game on a 14-0 run. Tampa's defense contributed to their offense, as Martin Lakovic ignited the bench with a huge chase down block. Lakovic's efforts lead to a three-pointer in transition by Derrick Felder, giving him his second of the half. In his second game with Tampa, seven-foot center Khadim Gueye recorded four assists, as he found his teammate Brent Duncan underneath the basket for two high percentage layups, pushing the Spartans lead to double digits early on. Forward Brent Duncan started off hot, as he hit two mid-range pullup jumpers as well as adding six rebounds, and finished the half with a perfect going 4-4 from the field. At the four minute media, Tampa held a commanding 34-25 lead and looked to continue the solid offensive performance. Tampa's offense came to play tonight, as they shot 56%, going 20-36 from the field, adding twelve assists, and controlling the rebounding battle with twenty rebounds. Felder continued his hot shooting performance, as he closed out the half hitting back-to-back three pointers. He finished the half with fourteen points, going 4-5 from three-point range. Pat Bacon also gave the Spartans fourteen points while adding four rebounds. || 44-34 Tampa

2nd Half || Both teams continued to battle with fast-paced offensive efforts. However, Washburn was able to attack coming out of the locker room, erasing their 10-point deficit. Carl Swensen contributed his second three-pointer of the season to push the Spartan lead back to eight points. More than halfway throughout the second period of play, Washburn took their first lead of the game at 62-60. Bacon stripped the opposing guard, leading to a Fastbreak finish on the other end, narrowing the deficit to just one point. With less than five minutes remaining, the Spartans continued to be plagued by fouls as both big men, Gueye and Lakovic fouled out. || 87-73 Washburn

INSIDE THE STATS:

• Three Spartans finished in double-figures: Derrick Felder (22), Pat Bacon (25), Brent Duncan (14).

BEYOND THE BOX:

• Pat Bacon has scored in double-digits figures in every game this season.
• Derrick Felder has scored double figures in seven of his last eight games. 
• Bacon is the fourth leading scorer in the Sunshine State Conference, averaging 21.0 points per game.
• Bacon is also the 39^th leading scorer in NCAA Division II.
• Tampa's defense allowed 53 points in the second half. 
• Tampa held the lead for a total of 31 minutes and 51 seconds. 

UP NEXT: The University of Tampa Men's Basketball team will play a matchup tomorrow, Thursday, December 19^th against the Owls of Florida Atlantic (NCAA Division I). The matchup is the first between the two since 1992, in which the Spartans lost on March 3^rd, 69-68.  

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