First Half Comeback Not Enough, Tampa Falls On The Road

Boca Raton, Fla – The University of Tampa Men's Basketball team was on the road again this afternoon as they traveled to face Lynn University. After dropping game one to the Fightig Knights at home, the Spartans knew they needed a strong performance on the road. The Spartans are also in the midst of a seeding fight with five other Sunshine State Conference teams in the middle of the leaderboard. In what was a game of runs, the Spartans fought all the way to the end but came one run short. 

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:

Final Score: Tampa 69, Lynn 84

Records: Tampa 14-7 (6-7 SSC), Lynn 14-5 (9-4 SSC)

Location: de Hoernle Sports Center l Boca Raton, Fla.

All-time series: This was the 56th meeting between these two programs, With the loss, Tampa falls to 25-31 in the all-time series. 

HOW IT HAPPENED: 

FIRST HALF: To start this contest, Lynn drilled their first shot of the game from deep before Amarion Nimmers answered right back with a three of his own. After the first Tampa stop of the game, Tyson Leitao converted a smooth turn around jumper to give Tampa their first lead of the game. Leitoa got to work early in this contest, getting bhis first two shots to fall and snagging a board in the first few minutes. Lynn began to heat up and with 15:12 left in the half led 13-9. Ian Higdon got on the board to pull the Spartans to within two but Lynn answered with a transition dunk to extend the lead to 17-11. Amarion Nimmers hit another jumper but Lynn continued to make plays and find points on the other end. Tyson Leitao and Bryan Williams both found buckets before the ten minute mark but after back to back Lynn threes, Tampa was down double digits (27-17). Lynn continued to shoot the deep ball but Ryan Blount, Tyson Leitao, and Kaden Froebe kept the Spartans in it with clutch buckets. Both teams traded stops and baskets across the five minute mark until Tampa finally got in rhythm and went on a small run. Tyson Leitao dropped four straight points before Amarion Nimmers hit another three to pull Tampa within two possessions at 37-32. Lynn finally put an end to the Spartan run but Trey Lane hit the biggest shot of the half. After a pair of Tyson Leitao free throws, Lane splashed an NBA range three pointer to make the scoreline 39-37 Lynn, with under two minutes to go. This first half comeback by Tampa was completed by none other than Tyson Leitao, who tied the game with a tough finish through contact. Tyson then finished his amazing first half by out muscling three Fighting Knights for a rebound, not allowing Lynn to get the last shot of the half. Tampa fought all the way back from down double digits to being tied with Lynn heading into the final 20 minutes of play. Tyson Leitao has gone ballistic since surpassing 1000 career points with 29 in Tampa's last game. In the first half of this contest alone, he dropped 16 points to go along with six rebounds. 

Score: Tampa 41, Lynn 41

SECOND HALF: With a tie game going into the second half, Tampa knew they needed to set the tone from the start. Ryan Blount did just that by hitting a three to open the scoring and give Tampa the lead. Lynn responded with back to back to buckets in the paint to retake the lead 45-44. The Fighting Knights continued to score without hesitation and by the 15 minute mark, they led 54-44. Tyson Leitao finally got to work inside and ended the Lynn run before Kaden Froebe got the line to cut the lead to seven. Leitao again found himself alone on the lower blocks and his 20th point of the night cut the lead to five. Both teams continued to battle hard but with 12 minutes left in the half, Lynn led 56-49. The Spartans unfortunately found themselves in both foul trouble and shooting trouble in the first eight minutes of the half, limiting the explosiveness of their offense. The Fighting Knight took advantage of this and re-grew the lead to double digits, at one point leading by 12. Kyler Lamb and Trey Lane each hit back to back shots as the game crossed into the final ten minutes to keep the Spartans within striking distance. Ryan Blount added a pair of free throws to cut the lead back to single digits but Tampa needed stops in bunches. They were able to force a turnover and two missed shots but were unable to convert those empty Lynn possessions into points. With 6:30 on the clock, Lynn pushed the lead back to double digits with a deep three. Both teams traded stops and a few baskets but with less than four minutes to go, Tampa was still down 78-63. Despite the total team struggles, Tyson Leitao for the second straight game dropped a 23+ point double-double with his 23 point, 16 rebound performance. Kyler Lamb, BJ Shaeffer and Zach Johnson each hit shots as time winded down but the Fighting Knights gave no life to a last chance comeback. 

FINAL: Tampa 69, Lynn 84

INSIDE THE STATS:

• Tyson Leitao records his 11th double-double of the season - 23 points, 16 boards

• Kaden Froebe snags 2 steals, extending his streak of games with 2+ steals to four straight

• Spartans keep up their nation leading rebounds pace with 46 total rebounds

UP NEXT: After a week on the road, the Spartans will come back to the Bob Martinez Center to do battle with top ranked Nova Southeastern. This highly anticipated contest will take place on Wednesday, February 5th at 7:30pm. 

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