Box Score LAKELAND - Rion Rayfield's 3-point shooting has helped the Moccasins win a lot of games over the last four years, but Tuesday night, the fifth-year senior did it another way. Oh, there were 3-pointers to be sure, but it was Rayfield's blocked shot with two seconds to play that secured Florida Southern's 79-78 win over Armstrong Atlantic State (Ga.).
The Moccasins (4-3) led by nine at halftime, but the Pirates (3-1) out-scored them 13-4 to start the second half and tied the game at 47 when Mychal Horn came up with a steal and break-away basket at the 14:16 mark. Less than two minutes later, the Pirates used another Florida Southern turnover to take their first lead of the night with 12:39 remaining.
Armstrong Atlantic led by as many as six on two different occasions after that, but a 9-0 run after the second one put Florida Southern back on top. It was Rayfield who started it with a pair of free throws before Preston Fredrick put back his own missed shot with 7:18 remaining to get the Mocs within two. After the Pirates turned the ball over on the other end, Cameron Wooten knocked down a 3-pointer from the right corner to give the Mocs a 67-66 lead, and a steal by Rayfield led to a fast-break basket by Damon Ellison that gave them a three-point advantage.
Over the next 4½ minutes, the lead changed hands six times and was tied three other times, setting the stage for a dramatic finish. The Pirates had taken a 76-75 lead on two free throws by Brett Goodwell with 1:35 remaining, but Rayfield answered for the Moccasins with a jumper at the 1:14 mark to put FSC back on top. Chris Edwards then missed a 3-point shot for AASU, but atoned moments later by coming up with a steal and getting a quick timeout called with 24.8 seconds on the clock.
The Pirates turned that into a bucket by Goodwell that gave them a 78-77 lead with 13 seconds to play, the ninth lead change in the final 13 minutes, and there was one more yet to come. That's because Rayfield was fouled almost immediately after Goodwell's basket and he converted both free throws with 11.7 seconds remaining.
After Armstrong Atlantic got the ball to mid-court and both teams called a timeout, the Pirates worked the ball into the paint for Goodwell, who was seven-for-10 from the floor at that point in the game. With the ball coming in from the right corner, Goodwell tried to go under the basket for a layup on the opposite side, but Rayfield was there to block it. Goodwell was able to grab the rebound himself and attempt another shot but that too was off the mark as time expired, allowing the Mocs to earn their 79-78 victory.
It was the second time already this year that Florida Southern was involved in a game decided by a shot at the buzzer. The Mocs had lost to South Carolina-Aiken, 77-75 on November 20, when the Pacers made one.
The blocked shot by Rayfield was only the seventh of his career. He also led the Mocs with 17 points Tuesday, going 4-for-7 from the floor, 3-for-5 from behind the arc, and 6-for-6 from the line. He added three assists and two steals to his stat line, and moved into sole possession of second place in the school's record book with 427 assists in his career.
A.J. Hawkins scored a season-high 15 points with five rebounds, and Terry Jenkins added 10 points and three steals. Goodwell led Armstrong Atlantic State with 20 points and six rebounds, with Jesse Wheeler scoring 12, Grant Domsic scoring 11 with five assists, and Horn adding 10 points and four assists off the bench.
Early in the game, the Moccasins looked inside for most of their points, with Hawkins scoring 13 in the first half, and Brett Bailey scoring six of his eight. That duo combined for 10 of Florida Southern's first 15 points before 3-pointers by Wooten and Terry Jenkins gave them a 21-10 lead. Hawkins then scored seven of the next nine points for the Mocs before baskets by Fredrick and Bailey put them ahead 34-24 with 5:12 remaining in the first half.
Rayfield started to heat up after that with back-to-back 3-pointers, and after the Pirates cut the gap to six, Brandon Jenkins hit one from long range just before halftime. It was the only 3-pointer of the night for Jenkins, who also contributed with seven rebounds and nine assists.
Florida Southern will end its six-game home-stand on Wednesday night, December 8, when it hosts Ave Maria at 7:30.
