The 17th ranked Rollins College Tars (14-2 6-0 SSC) winners of six straight face a stiff road test when they battle the Saint Leo Lions at the Marion Bowman Activities Center Saturday. Saint Leo was the preseason favorite to win the conference and sits third in the league, while the Tars were picked to finish fourth and sit atop the conference.
The Tars are coming off a 72-55 win over Barry in Miami Shores on Wednesday. After a lackluster first half, the Tars opened the second half on a 27-2 run. The big run turned a 32-27 halftime deficit into a 54-34 Tars lead. Four Tars scored in double figures Wednesday paced by Adam Allen with 14 points. Mitch Woods and Jeff Dirkin each netted 12, while Kyle McClanahan chipped in 10 points, five rebounds and five assists. The Tars shot 53 percent for the game, including 67 percent in the second half. Barry shot just 34 percent for the contest.
The Tars zone defense leads the SSC and is 30th in the nation in Division II allowing 64.2 points per game. The Tars are third in the conference on the offensive end, scoring 75.3 points a contest. Shooting the ball has been a strength for the Tars all season. They lead the conference in made 3-pointers at 10 a game. They shoot 49 percent from the field as a team. The Tars have also been solid on the glass, where they out rebound their opponents by 5.1 rebounds a game.
Dave Diakite paces the Tars box score at 14.8 points and 5.9 rebounds a game. McClanahan comes into Saturday averaging 13.9 points a game and is second in the conference with a .575 field goal percentage. The grad student from Winter Park also leads the SSC in assists at 5.3 a game. Allen has come on of late and is putting up 10.8 points a game.
Saint Leo comes in having played four straight overtime games (going 2-2.) The Lions are 5-2 in the SSC and 12-4 overall. Leo's last game was a 61-57 overtime loss to Eckerd. They defeated Barry in double overtime, lost at Tampa in OT and beat Florida tech after one extra session. Marcus Ruh had 14 points and eight rebounds to lead the Lions in the loss to Eckerd. Jerrel Harris and Chim Kadima each netted 12 versus the Tritons.
Ruh is third in the SSC and paces the Lions at 17.6 points a game. Harris scores 13.9 a night and Trent Thomas puts up 13.1 points a game for Saint Leo. Shaun Adams leads both the Lions and the SSC by blocking two shots per game.
The Lions score 70.8 points a game, which is good for #8 in the conference. They are third on the defensive end giving up 63.2 points a night (64.7 in conference play.) They lead the conference in 3-point defense, the Lions opponents are shooting just 39 percent from the 3-point line.
The Line: Rollins by 2.5
Other SSC Lines:
Eckerd -15@Palm Beach Atlantic
Tampa Even @Barry
Florida Southern -7 @Florida Tech
Nova Southeastern _2.5@Lynn
SSC Standings
Rollins 6-0 (14-2)
Florida Southern 5-1 (13-2)
Saint Leo 5-2 (12-4)
Eckerd 4-3 (10-4)
Nova Southeastern 3-3 (10-5)
Lynn 2-4 (10-6)
Tampa 1-5 (13-5)
Barry 1-5 (7-8)
Florida Tech 1-5 (7-8)
No comments:
Post a Comment