Florida Tech Basketball Team Wins 6th Straight Game with 76-61 Victory Over Embry Riddle

Houpt scored 17 points for the Panthers

BREVARD COUNTY • MELBOURNE, FLORIDA – Florida Tech hosted No. 18/23 Embry-Riddle, who were riding a six-game win streak, for a big SSC matchup. After being tied at the break, the Panthers dominated the second half to pull out a 76-61 win.

An early triple from Sean Houpt gave the Panthers a 7-2 lead. A turnaround hook shot from Mekhii Noble extended Tech’s lead to 15-9.

A contested 3-pointer from Sesan Russell gave the Panthers a double-digit lead at 24-13. After the Eagles scored four straight points, Russell knocked down another tough triple to give the Panthers a 27-17 advantage.

Seven consecutive points from Jerry Bracey for Embry-Riddle cut the lead to 31-29 with 2:39 left in the half. A layup for Jared Berry of the Eagles with eight seconds remaining in the half tied the game at 33.

Embry-Riddle scored the first four points of the half, but Tech tied it back at 37 on a 4-point play from Russell. A 3-pointer from Josh Mims gave Tech a 44-39 lead with 13:59 left in the ball game.

A fast break layup from Niall Harris pushed the Panther’s lead to 50-41.

Russell banked in a straightway 3-pointer to give Tech a 55-44 lead with 9:02 remaining. Both teams were getting defensive stops before Harris knocked down two free throws to give the Panthers a 61-50 lead with 5:45 left in the game.

After losing the ball at first, Russell regained possession and hit a corner jumper to give the Panthers a 67-53 lead. The biggest shot of the night came from Mims, drilling a 3-pointer to give Tech a 70-55 lead as the shot clock expired.

The Panthers made six free throws in the final two minutes to close out the 76-61 win. Russell was the leading scorer for the Panthers with 28 points on 10-of-13 shooting. The senior made four 3-pointers.

Outside of scoring he dished six assists and grabbed five rebounds. Houpt scored 17 points for the Panthers. He was 7-of-8 from the free-throw line.

Also in double-digits for Tech was Harris with 12 points and seven rebounds.

Mims scored a season-high eight points with two 3-pointers.

Elias Martin was the leading rebounder with nine rebounds and also had four blocks on defense. The Panthers shot 46.2% (24-52) and 34.8% (8-23) from three. Embry-Riddle was 37.3% (22-59) from the field and 11.8% (2-17) from behind the arc.

At the free throw line, Florida Tech was 83.3% (20-24) while Embry-Riddle was 65.2% (15-23).

The Eagles won the rebound battle 36-34. Florida Tech had 16 assists and 13 turnovers. Embry-Riddle tallied 18 assists and turned the ball over 14 times. Defensively, the Panthers had six blocks and 10 steals.

Florida Tech moves to 9-9 all-time against Embry-Riddle.

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