Blount Drops 22, Leitao Grabs 19 Boards In Comeback Win For Tampa

Melbourne, Fla – The University of Tampa Men's Basketball team was back on the road this evening as they traveled to the east coast of Florida. The Spartans traveled to face Florida Tech with a chance to complete the regular season sweep. With only three games left this season, the Spartans are still looking to move up the Sunshine State Conference leaderboards. Tonight's game was not just a showcase of the Spartans elite shot making, but proved they can climb out of holes early and dig in for the rest of the game. 

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:

Final Score: Tampa 95, Florida Tech 83

Records: Tampa 17-9 (8-9 SSC), Florida Tech 5-20 (2-15 SSC)

Location: Charles and Ruth Clemente Center l Melbourne, Fla.

All-time series: This was the 93rd meeting between these two programs. Tampa extends the all-time series lead to 60-32. 

HOW IT HAPPENED: 

FIRST HALF: After winning the opening tip, Kaden Froebe finished a runner through contact before the defense forced a shot clock violation. Bryan Williams put a stamp on the opening momentum for Tampa as he knocked down a corner three. The Spartans then forced a turnover on the ensuing inbound and Tyson Leitao finished a roll to the basket with an easy lead. This gave Tampa a quick 7-0 lead in just the first two minutes of the game. Florida Tech finally got on the board but the early offensive explosion mixed with tough defense from Tampa had given them early control of this game. Trey Lane and Ryan Blount added makes to continue the Spartan run and by the 15 minute mark, Tampa led 14-5. Florida Tech hit back to back three's to bring them back in the game but Ryan Blount drilled his second three of the game to put the Spartans back up by five. With the score 16-11, Grady Schwartz sank a free throw before Florida Tech again drilled back to back three's and tied the game at 17. Florida Tech continued to make shots from beyond the arc in the first ten minutes but Ryan Blount answered with another three ball of his own. Tray Lane swung the momentum back to Tampa with a steal and coast to coast finish. Lane dug deep into his bag of finishing tricks, using a clean hard stop to make two Panther defenders fly by him. Florida Tech was able to answer with three to tie the game at 25 before hitting yet another first half three to take a 28-25 lead. In what seemed like a nightmare for the Spartans, the Panthers hit their seventh three pointer of the game with 7:32 left to extend the lead out to six. The Panthers then made it nine first half three pointers with yet again, back to back makes from deep. With five minutes to go, the Spartans finally put an end to the run but quickly found themselves down 38-25. Bryan Williams inserted some life back into Tampa with tough three point play through contact. Williams then dished off a no-look pass to Kaden Froebe for an easy lay and the Tampa offense was back off and running. As the first half transitioned into the final few minutes Amarion Nimmers and Ryan Blount both finished takes around the rim but the Panthers hit their 11th three pointer of the first half to take a 50-38 lead into the break. 

Score: Tampa 38, Florida Tech 50

SECOND HALF: To open the second half, the Panthers got a layup to go  after running down the clock but Tray Lane knocked down a three to try and get the Spartans going. Tyson Leitao followed his teammate up with a tough putback finish before Bryan Williams finished a runner in transition. Despite the early offensive success, the Panthers went 4-4 in possessions with a basket to start the half and the Spartans were still down 13. Tampa got their first stop of the half with 17:07 left to go and were rewarded with a Tyson Leitao layup to make the scoreline 59-47 Florida Tech. Tray Lane was doing everything he could to bring the Spartans back into this contest. Lane used a burst of speed to blow by his defender for a finish and a foul in which he completed the three point play. He then locked up his man on defense and forced back to back Panther turnovers. Lane and Bryan Williams turned those turnovers into points and the Spartans had come all the way back to make it 59-54 Florida Tech. Tampa used another good stop on defense to cut the deficit to a single possession after Ryan Blount drilled a huge three. By the 14 minute mark of the second half the Spartans went from down 15 to a two point game. Tampa continued the run by forcing another turnover and Kaden Froebe went up through contact for a finish and a tie game. Tied at 59, Tampa came up with another big stop and Ryan Blount gave Tampa a three point lead with a long range swish. Before the second half even crossed the 12 minute mark, the Spartans used a 15-0 run to regain control of the game and lead 62-59. Florida Tech put an end to the run but the momentum was fully back on Tampa's side. With Tampa up 64-61, Amarion Nimmers caught fire. Nimmers drilled a three, finished a three point play through contact, and hit a runner in transition to push the Tampa lead out to nine. Both teams traded baskets as the game crossed into the final eight minutes but a Kaden Froebe free throw gave the Spartans a 73-63 lead. Florida Tech was not going to go out without a fight, they forced back to back Tampa turnovers and used a quick scoring burst to pull within six. Tray Lane answered right back with a steal and transition layup as the game went under six minutes. With a 77-70 Tampa lead, the Panthers used a 7-4 run to pull within four before Ryan Blount and Amarion Nimmers drilled back to back three pointers for the second time tonight to push the lead back out to 87-77. With under three minutes to go Florida Tech answered with a three of their own and a free throw to pull back within six. Bryan Williams put down any chance of a comeback by hitting back to back shots around the rim to give the Spartans a double digit lead at 91-81. Up 10 with under two minutes to go, Williams and Kaden Froebe added layups to lock up a Tampa victory. The Spartans completed the second half comeback in dominant fashion, outscoring the Panthers 57-33. 

FINAL: Tampa 95, Florida Tech 83

INSIDE THE STATS:

• Tyson Leitao breaks the all-time double-double record, dropping 12 points and 19 rebounds for his 36th career double-double

• Freshman Ryan Blount goes for 22 points along with 8 rebounds 

• Six Spartans finished with double digit points 

UP NEXT: The Spartans will stay on the east coast for the last regular season road game of the season. They will face Palm Beach Atlantic in downtown West Palm Beach on Saturday, February 22, with tip-off scheduled for 4:00pm. 

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