Box Score HUNTSVILLE, Ala. - Florida Southern's season came to an end Saturday afternoon in the NCAA Division II South Region Tournament, but not before a dramatic comeback gave the Moccasins one more chance to extend it. Down by 24 with 5½ minutes to play, Florida Southern got within seven with 2½ minutes remaining before Christian Brothers finally put the Mocs away for an 85-74 win.
The second-seeded Buccaneers (24-6) never trailed against the seventh-seeded Moccasins (20-10), and shot 60 percent from the floor. In the first half, Christian Brothers shot 65 percent (20-31) and was also 6-for-11 from 3-point range to take a 49-28 lead at the break.
Christian Brothers extended its lead to 72-48 with 5:36 remaining, but Florida Southern jumped off the mat behind a 3-point barrage from Seth Evans. The junior guard hit back-to-back 3-pointers to cut the gap to 18, and after a pair of free throws by Kevin Capers made the score 72-56, Evans sunk another 3-pointer, was fouled on the shot and completed the 4-point play with a free throw.
Now trailing only 72-60, Capers scored again for the Mocs on a layup with 3:56 to play. Christian Brothers finally ended Florida Southern's 14-0 run when Scott Dennis knocked down a jump shot at the 3:42 mark, but Evans answered for the Mocs again with a jumper of his own and yet another 3-pointer that trimmed the deficit to seven with 2:37 remaining. That was as close as the Mocs could get though.
After a Christian Brothers timeout, Dennis drained a 3-pointer for the Buccaneers, and Harry Green and Trey Casey combined to make six straight free throws in the final minute. A basket by Casey with 14 seconds remaining provided the final margin after a 3-pointer by Dominic Lane got the Mocs within nine with 19 seconds to play.
Evans led all scorers in the game with 27 points on 9-for-19 shooting from the floor, 6-for-12 shooting from behind the arc, and 3-for-4 shooting from the line. Brett Bailey scored 21 points and had eight rebounds, while going 10-for-17 from the floor, and Capers had 13 points.
Evans also finished the year with 105 three-point field goals, one shy of the school's single season record set by Tim Gatz in 1995. His .891 free throw percentage was third on the team's single season list, .004 behind the mark Bob Salmi set in 1984.
The Moccasins shot 39 percent overall, were 7-for-25 on 3-point attempts, and 11-for-17 at the free throw line. The committed just six turnovers in the game, while forcing Christian Brothers into 14.
In jumping out to a 16-7 lead in the first 4½ minutes, the Buccaneers started the game 6-for-7, which included 3-pointers from Cory McArthy, Michael Drake and Harry Green. It was a 3-pointer by Green that snapped a 7-7 tie and sparked an 11-0 run by the Buccaneers that put the Moccasins behind by eight or more points for the rest of the game.
The Mocs still trailed by only nine with 10 minutes gone in the first half, but the Buccaneers took control by out-scoring them 16-3 over the next six minutes. Zack Warner did most of that scoring for the Bucs with eight of his team-leading 22 points coming during that spurt.
Warner was 10-for-17 from the floor, grabbed nine rebounds, handed out six assists and had six blocked shots as well. Green went 7-for-10 for Christian Brothers, scored 20 points and had five boards.
