Spartans And Bucs Set To Battle In Martinez Center

TAMPA, Fla. – The University of Tampa men's and women's basketball teams will be back in action on Wednesday night as they welcome in their Sunshine State Conference foe, the Barry University Buccaneers. Both the men's and women's teams are looking for their first conference win.

The women will kick off the doubleheader with the Bucs at 5:30 as they are back at home after playing eight consecutive games away from the Martinez Center. During that span, the Spartans went 4-4 including an upset victory over the fourth-ranked Drury University Panthers.

Last time out the Spartans fell to the No. 22 ranked Florida Southern Mocs 71-67. The Bucs defeated the Rollins Tars by a score of 82-52. Barry enters the game on a four-game winning streak, and they sit at 3-1 in conference play.

Leading the way for UT are Juliana Cavallaro and Elena de Alfredo. Cavallaro is averaging 13.8 points per game while de Alfredo is just behind with 13 points per game. Cavallaro also ranks third on the team with 5.6 rebounds per game.

On the boards, Taylor McVey is leading the team with 5.8 rebounds per game, while Angela Alverez is racking up 5.7 boards per game off the bench. McVey is also third on the team with 8.6 points per game.

The Bucs have a trio of scorers averaging double figures as Amra Elezovic is leading the charge with 15.3 points per game. Ines Kerin and Jackie Perez are averaging 12.2 and 11.6 points respectively.

Tampa leads the all-time series with Barry 42-20, as the Spartans swept the series last season.

The men will conclude the doubleheader at 7:30 with the Bucs. The Spartans are coming off a 93-75 defeat to Florida Southern. Duke Shelton registered a double-double against the defending champs, as he picked up 14 points and 13 rebounds. The Bucs are coming off a 98-85 victory over Rollins College and sit at 3-1 in SSC play.

Leading the way for Tampa this season is freshman guard Pat Bacon. Bacon is averaging 21 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 3.6 assists per game.  He also ranks fourth in the conference in scoring.

Austin Rettig is second on the team with 15.1 points per game and leads the team with 5.9 rebounds per game. Marcel Robinson ranks third on the team with 11.8 points and 5.4 rebounds per game.

Yunio Barrueta leads the way for Barry as he is averaging a double-double with 25 points and 11.4 rebounds per game. Barrueta also leads the conference in both categories.

Barry has four other players who are averaging double figures as Anders Haas is averaging 14.5, Adrian Gonzalez is averaging 13.3, Undra Mitchem is averaging 11, and Elvar Fridriksson is averaging 10.6 points per game. As a team, the Bucs lead the Conference, as they are scoring 93.1 points per game.

Tampa leads the series with Barry 41-22, as the home team won each game last season to split the season series. 

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