Box Score TAMPA - For the second straight year, the Sunshine State Conference regular season basketball title belongs to the Moccasins.
The Moccasins clinched their 18th regular season title with one game to play thanks to a 77-70 victory at Tampa Wednesday night. That boosted the Moccasins' record to 23-6 overall,, 12-3 in the SSC, with the final regular season game coming up Saturday at Jenkins Field House at 7:30 against Nova Southeastern.
Tampa led for most of the first half until John Thompson's tip in with 3:36 remaining put the Moccasins ahead for good. Thompson produced his 10th double-double of the season with a 16-point, 14-rebound performance.
Rob Eldridge led the 22nd-ranked Moccasins with 19 points and moved into tenth place on FSC's career scoring list. He now has 1,301 career points, surpassing John Mullis (1960-63), who was in 10th place with 1,290 career points.
Rion Rayfield added 15 points off the bench and Braxton Williams tossed in 10 points. The Moccasins' last 10 points of the game all came from the free throw line, as they made 29 of 40 for the game.
In addition to clinching the regular season title, the Moccasins also earned the top seed in the SSC Tournament that will start Mar. 4. The Moccasins will play at home that night and a win would send them to the semifinals at Nova Southeastern Mar. 7.
Saturday's regular season finale will be Senior Night, with the Moccasins recognizing the six seniors on this year's squad - Eric Fernandez, Carlton Morrick, Rashaad Singleton, Zach Smith, Braxton Williams and Rob Eldridge - prior to the start of the game.
