MIAMI SHORES, Fla. – The Buccaneers fended off a tough opponent on Thursday, Jan. 2, topping the Embry-Riddle Eagles who entered the evening with only a single loss on the season and tied for first place in the Sunshine State Conference. Barry took down their SSC counterpart, 88-77 at the Health & Sports Center.

INSIDE THE MATCHUPS:

Final: Barry 88, ERAU 77
Records: Barry (10-2, 4-1 SSC), ERAU (11-2, 3-2 SSC)
All-Time Series: Barry leads 11-1

SUMMARY:

• The Bucs came out of the gates with a mission, going on 11-0 run to put the Eagles on notice. Back-to-back threes followed by a David Moya fast-break layup forced Embry-Riddle Coach Steve Ridder to take a timeout to regroup. 
• Eagles guard Romeo Crouch made his presence felt early with ten points and nine rebounds in the first half alone, but Barry's backcourt fired back with all four of their guards each sinking a triple in the period. Jake Kakar showed off his hustle, recording two chase-down blocks in the half.
• The second half was the tale of Tylan Birts as the forward from Florida City, Fla., recorded 28 points in the half on 10-13 shooting from the field made all the more impressive by his 8-9 mark from the charity stripe, including four straight makes in crunch time to seal the deal for the Bucs.

NOTEWORTHY:.

• Birts' 32 point outburst marks a career high for the senior. 
• Embry-Riddle is known for their draining full court press, but the Buccaneers may have cracked the code; utilizing their pace and passing to log 33 fast-break points in the contest compared to just eight for the Eagles. 

ON THE HORIZON:

The Bucs host another conference game on Saturday, Jan. 4, when they host the Rollins Tars at 4:00 pm.