Mocs Men's Basketball Falls in SSC Championship Game at Saint Leo

Box Score SAINT LEO, Fla. – Playing for their third Sunshine State Conference Men's Basketball Championship in as many years, the Florida Southern College Moccasins fell short, 83-70, at No. 2 Saint Leo University on Sunday afternoon. The No. 4 seed Mocs had won the last two championships, and will end the 2021 season with a 7-5 record.
Named to the Sunshine State Conference All-Tournament team were junior E.J. Dambreville and senior Jalyn Hinton.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
1^ST HALF

• Florida Southern got on the board first, when grad student Jacob Schner knocked down a three-pointer.
• A minute later, Dambreville grabbed a defensive rebound and made the quick outlet pass to Hinton, who slammed home a fast break dunk, and the Runnin' Mocs were out to a quick 5-0 lead.
• The teams traded baskets, with the score tied at seven points apiece just four and a half minutes into the game.
• Hinton then made a layup, to keep the lead in the Mocs favor, before grad student Brandon Carroll's first basket of the game put the Mocs up by four.
• Both teams traded buckets, and the score was again tied, this time at 17, midway through the half.
• The Lions grabbed their first lead of the game a moments later, 20-19, before another Hinton dunk put the Mocs back in the lead.
• Saint Leo retook the lead at 26-25 at the 6:42 mark, only to have Hinton once again put the Mocs in the lead, this time with a jumper, just 18 seconds later.
• With three minutes remaining in the half, the Mocs managed a five point lead, at 33-28, on a Hinton pull up jumper.
• Undeterred, the hosts tied the score with 1:32 remaining, when SSC Tournament MVP Rusty Moorer stepped to the line and made three consecutive free throws.
• His free throws were part of a 10-0 run, as SLU retook the lead, 38-33, with less than 36 seconds remaining in the half.
• Hinton would make a layup to stem the run, as the hosts took a timeout to setup one final shot. Moore delivered with a three form the elbow, despite being heavily guarded.
• Through the first 20 minutes, Moorer led all scorers with 19 points, while the Mocs were led by Hinton's 16, who made eight of his ten shots from the field. Junior DeAndre Campbell had eight points, while classmate Xavier Rhodes added three assists.
• In all, the lead changed hands seven times, with six ties.

 
2^nd HALF

• The Lions jumped out to an early eight point lead in just the first 100 seconds of the second half.
• With a 7-0 run, capped by a Campbell free throw, the Mocs were back within one, 47-46.
• A Dambreville three-point play tied the score at 49, before Carroll's layup put Southern back in the lead.
• With 13:24 remaining in the season, the Mocs led, 53-51, on a Hinton dunk, his 20^th point of the game.
• The Lions responded with a commanding 13-0 run, allowing the hosts to seize control of the game.
• The lead grew to as many as 15 points, 72-57, with six minutes remaining.
• Florida Southern responded, trimming the lead to eight points with 3:59 to go, on a Rhodes three pointer.
• That was as close as the Mocs would get, as Saint Leo claimed the championship, 83-70.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Hinton would lead FSC in scoring with 24 points, followed by Carroll with 16, and Campbell with 11.
• Dambreville added a team-high 12 rebounds, to go with his nine points.
• For the game, Southern shot 39.1% from the floor, while the host Lions shot 37.1%.
• Saint Leo led for 17:42 of playing time, while Florida Southern led for 17:43.

ALL-SSC TOURNAMENT TEAM

• E.J.Dambreville had nine points and a team-high 12 rebounds tonight, with four assists. In the Quarterfinal victory of Rollins, he scored 17 points, making all six of his shots from the floor, with 15 rebounds, and six assists. At PBA, he had another 21 points, making seven of his ten shots, with 12 rebounds and three assists.
• Jalyn Hinton led the Mocs in the title game with 24 points, making 12 of his 16 shots from the field. He added five rebounds, two assists, and two blocked shots. In the Semifinal win over PBA, he went for 18 points and 14 rebounds, which included eight offensive boards. Against Rollins, he tied a career-high with 33 points, added 11 rebounds, and five blocked shots.