Steen and Gerald Eclipse 1,000 Career Points in #21 Mocs' Win Over Eagles

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Alex Steen and Peyton Gerald each eclipsed 1,000 career points as the No. 21/24 Florida Southern College men's basketball team beat Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University 99-93 on Wednesday night at the ICI Center.
 
"Embry-Riddle is a very good team and plays extremely well at home, so I am proud of our effort tonight," said head coach Mike Donnelly on the road victory. "We made a lot of big plays the last five minutes to pull away and earn win number 20!"
 
The Moccasins (20-5, 11-4 SSC) had a big night from Steen and Gerald to hit over 1,000 points in their respective careers. The Eagles (15-8, 9-6 SSC) were unable to stop the Mocs in the final minutes as FSC pulled away late to win on the road.
 
Florida Southern was led in scoring by Steen, who finished with 23 points and 10 rebounds. He hit his 1,000^th point in the first half off a tip-in bucket at the 3:32 mark to become the 48^th player in program history to reach the mark. Steen also became the 20^th member of the 1,000-point/500-rebound club at FSC. Gerald hit his 1,000^th career point as part of a dunk in the final seconds of the first half, having combined for 675 points in three seasons at Catawba. Gerald finished with 13 points, shooting 6-for-9 from the field.
 
The Mocs also had a big day from Amare Miller with 18 points off the bench and a perfect 7-for-7 from the field. Jadin Booth finished with 19 points and nine assists, just shy of a double-double, and Kristians Feierbergs with 11 points as the Moccasin double-digit scorers. FSC shot 56 percent as a team with 22 assists and 48 of their points in the paint. The nation's leader in blocks, Florida Southern finished with eight blocks to Embry-Riddle's two.
 
Embry-Riddle had five Eagles in double digits, led by Jared Berry with 18 points. Jerry Bracey II had 16 points, Yassin Hussein with 14, Milan Skoric with 12 points, and Dru Nickson finished with 11 points. Overall, ERAU shot 42 percent but did out-rebound the Mocs 46-to-35, capitalizing on 22 second-chance points.
 
The Mocs were quick to score to start the game, beginning with a dunk by Steen, and quickly climbed to a five-point lead in the opening minutes. The Eagles tied the game at 14:20 and held a slight advantage in scoring over the next several minutes of play. Miller took over in the final eight minutes, scoring eight points in just three minutes, though ERAU went into halftime with a one-point lead, 41-40.
 
The Eagles led by six at the 18-minute mark of the second half, 49-43, however, a three by Gerald turned the game in favor of the Mocs, who took the lead three minutes later. FSC went on a hot streak halfway through the half to lead 67-61 under 10 minutes. The Eagles briefly tied the game at the 8-minute mark but the Mocs continued to lay down the shots to win 99-93.
 
The No. 21 Mocs will take on Barry University in a road contest on Saturday, Feb. 15, with a 4 p.m. start in Miami Shores.
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