Box Score DAYTONA BEACH, FL - A shooting slump in the middle of the game proved to be too much to overcome as Florida Southern College women's basketball was eliminated by Florida Tech, 58-52, in the semifinal round of the Sunshine State Conference Tournament on Saturday at the ICI Center.
The Moccasins (20-9) got off to a hot start, but cooled off significantly as the Panthers (15-13) knocked Florida Southern out of the tournament for the second-straight year.
Florida Southern will now wait until Sunday night to find out its postseason fate. The Mocs are currently projected to be one of eight teams to make the NCAA Division II South Regional.
HOW IT HAPPENED
• Florida Southern raced out to an 11-0 lead and looked as if it might cruise into Sunday's SSC title game. The Mocs led by as many as 12 (14-2) in the first quarter, and shot 50.0 percent (8-of-16) in the first 10 minutes to take a 20-12 lead.
• Trailing by 10 points (24-14) with 9:11 to go in the first half, Florida Tech reeled off an 8-0 run to pull within two points (24-22) and swing momentum its way. The Panthers would head into the locker room down 28-27.
• The third quarter proved to be Florida Southern's undoing, as the Moccasins shot just 1-of-13 from the floor in the third. Florida Tech scored the opening bucket of the second half to take its first lead of the game (29-28), and maintained the lead for nearly six minutes before the Mocs tied things at 35-35 with 4:15 to go.
• Jensen Blassage gave Florida Southern the lead when she hit free throw at the 3:29 mark to make it 36-35, but the Panthers answered with a jumper to take the lead for good. Florida Tech hit another shot just before the end of the third quarter to take a 43-36 lead.
• In the fourth quarter, Florida Tech drilled an early three-pointer to go up by 10 (46-36), but Florida Southern went on a 11-4 run to pull within three (50-47) with 4:44 to play.
• With the Panthers holding a five-point lead (55-50) with less than a minute to go, Gianna Vastola hit a layup with 34 seconds left to pull the Mocs within three (55-52). Florida Tech would hit 3-of-4 free throws down the stretch to seal the win.
• Florida Southern shot just 33.9 percent (20-of-59) on the day, including just 5-of-26 in the second and third quarters combined. The Moccasins also went just 2-of-12 from long range.
• Florida Tech finished 21-of-56 (37.5 percent) from the floor, including 2-of-7 from deep, and made 14-of-18 free-throw attempts.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
• Florida Southern fell to 44-25 all-time in the SSC Tournament, including 6-9 when facing Florida Tech in the conference tourney. The Moccasins have been eliminated by the Panthers in each of the past two years.
• The Moccasins dropped to 40-28 all-time against the Panthers, including 6-8 in neutral-site contests.
• Blassage led the Mocs with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Camille Giardina finished with 13 points and Vastola poured in 11 points and grabbed five rebounds.
• Florida Southern committed a season-high 22 turnovers, which Florida Tech converted in 24 points. The Panthers finished with a slim edge in rebounds (39-37), and recorded 13 steals.
UP NEXT
• Florida Southern is currently projected to be in the field of eight for the NCAA South Regional. The NCAA Division II Tournament field will be announced on Sunday evening. The Mocs entered the week ranked No. 4 in the South Region.
• The NCAA Tournament Selection Show is set to begin at 10 p.m. on Sunday, and can be seen by visiting NCAA.com.
