Men's Basketball | 2/20/2015 2:01:00 PM

GAME NOTES

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. -- Barry University men's basketball team will host Eckerd at 6 p.m. Saturday in the Homecoming game at the Health & Sports Center.

The No. 4 Buccaneers (20-3, 11-2 Sunshine State Conference) are making their final push to position themselves at the top of the league. Barry trails No. 1 Florida Southern by a game in league standings with three games remaining. The SSC Championships are March 6-8 in Kissimmee, Fla., at Silver Spurs Arena.

Eckerd (11-13, 4-10) nearly handed Barry its first league loss last month in St. Petersburg, but the Bucs rallied from 17 points down with under seven minutes to pull off a double-overtime win. It was the largest comeback of the season for Barry, which is coming off a loss Wednesday on the road.

"Now our goal is to finish strong," senior power forward Jevoni Robinson said. "It's very important that we play together. This is the important part of the season. I emphasize to my teammates that we start playing good now."

Robinson is quarterfinalist in the Dark Horse Dunker competition. Fans can vote every day by logging in to www.darkhorsedunker.com. The winner of the month-long voting contest advances to the College Slam Dunk Championships Apr. 2 on ESPN at the Final Four in Indianapolis.

The Bucs' 111 points against Eckerd in the first meeting is the most they've scored all season, and tied for the second most in school history. But Barry has slowed down in recent weeks, with three games in the 70s. In the last game at Florida Tech, the Bucs matched their season low in field goal shooting at 35.7 percent.

Eckerd has lost four in a row, but the Tritons' physical presence is always something to be concerned with. And the first time the Bucs met the Tritons, guard E.J. Moody was not active. He's averaging 10.3 points per game and shooting 91.4 percent from the free throw line. 

MAKE-A-WISH: Before the game Saturday, the Bucs will honor a local wish kid, Nathan, who is suffering from muscular dystrophy and is the recipient of a heart transplant. Barry will reveal Nathan's wish before the tip-off around 5:45 p.m. at the Health & Sports Center. People can support Barry's Make-A-Wish efforts by donating HERE. 

Barry University has been one of the nation's leaders in Make-A-Wish fundraising efforts over the last five years.