MELBOURNE, Fla. -- Tylan Birts to the rescue again. The senior forward from Florida City, Fla. put in a lob from Jake Kakar behind half court with one second left in the game to give the Buccaneers an 86-84 victory over Florida Tech inside the Clemente Center. Kakar's pass was made from the sideline, out-of-bounds after a timeout by coach Estes. Birts finished with 33 points, eight rebounds and six assists.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Final: Barry 86, Florida Tech 84
Records: Barry (16-5, 10-4 SSC), FT (10-12, 4-10 SSC)
All-Time Series: Barry lead 43-27
WHAT ARE THEY SAYING
"Ty is not only playing at a Sunshine State Conference Player of the Year level, he is playing at a First Team All-American level," Estes said about the reigning SSC Player of the Week.
SUMMARY:
- The Panthers opened the game on a 9-1 run with the Bucs missing their first four shots. Barry would respond with an 8-0 run to tie the game, but FT controlled the pace of the game in the first half leading by as many 13. Birts led the way in the first period for the Bucs with 12 points, five rebounds and four assists. FT scored in the paint time and time again, finishing the half outscoring Barry 34-18 in paint points and leading the game at the half 47-38.
- In the second half, Birts (21) and Toru Dean (14) scored 35 of the Bucs' 49 points shooting a combined 16-of-21 from the field. Leandro Allende's layup with 2:07 remaining in the game gave Barry their first lead of the second half at 82-81. The Buccaneers were able to flip the script of the Panthers, outscoring them 34-20 in paint points and out-rebounding FT 21-12.
- With five seconds left, Dean made the second most important basket for the Bucs, banking in a runner to take the lead 84-82 in what appeared at the moment to be a game-winner. During the following possession, Dean was called for a blocking foul in the back court in which the Panthers sank both free throws to tie the game. Birts would earn the Bucs' 10th conference win of the season thanks to a perfectly placed Kakar lob.
NOTEWORTHY:
- Dean set a new season-high with 18 points against the Panthers in his first career start.
- In his last five games, Birts is averaging 26 points, nine rebounds and two blocks on 65 percent shooting from the field and 50 percent shooting from three-point land.
ON THE HORIZON:
The Bucs remain on the road when they head to Daytona Beach, FL to take on Embry-Riddle (14-8, 6-8 SSC) on Saturday, February 8th. Tip-off is set for 6:00pm inside the ICI Center. Tune in to @GoBarryBucs on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for more information.
