Solid Effort Carries FIT to Thanksgiving Tournament Title
Florida Tech got 29 points from Sam Daniel and 27 points from Jordan Majors on Saturday, carrying the Panthers to a 98-83 victory over William Jewell in the championship game of the Florida Tech Thanksgiving Tournament.
Patrick Anderson had 17 points and 13 assists and Robert
Booth had a double-double as well, with 11 points and 10 rebounds. He, Daniel
and Majors all landed on the All-Tournament team.
William Jewell, who beat Tuskegee 76-58 in Friday’s
tournament opener, came to play, as it was raining threes early in the contest
on both sides. The Panthers jumped out to an 11-6 lead and the Cardinals would
come back with an answer. The game was tied a few times early in the first
half.
”They’re a really good basketball team,” said Panthers head
coach Billy Mims, of William Jewell. “They’ve got some really good players on
that team.”
The stat of the night in this one was the points off
turnovers. The Cardinals turned it over 16 times and the Panthers earned 27
points. Florida Tech had 13 turnovers, but William Jewell only scored seven
points off turnovers.
“We were the more aggressive team,” said Panthers head coach
Billy Mims. “It was a feeding frenzy, the chum was in the water and when we
came up with a turnover, we were efficient in turning that turnover into
points.”
The three-ball carried the Panthers to a 49-38 halftime
lead, as they were 10-of-16 from behind the arc and held a 19-4 advantage in
points off turnovers. Booth ended the half with a dunk, as the clock ran out.
“When you shoot 54 percent from the floor, you make 14 threes’
and shoot 45 percent behind the arc and you go 10-for-10 from the line, it’s
hard to lose,” said Mims. “Bottom line is, when you make shots, you’re a
difficult team to beat.”
The Panthers led by as many as 27 in the second half, the
Cardinals never got closer than 15 in the final 20 minutes.
Majors had 25 points in the win
over Bluefield on Friday and came back with another 27 points in this game,
earning him the tournament MVP. “In the last four games, Jordan has been what
we call a stat-filler,” said Mims. “Every statistic on the page, he’s got a
number in every column. Coaches love that, it just means he’s doing everything
right.”
Majors deserved the accolades for sure, but he was quick to
take the focus off himself. “Give credit to the team, without them it wouldn’t
be possible,” he said. “I just try to do my role on the team and I got great
teammates. I’m just glad we got to pull it off.”
For more info: William
Jewell @ Florida Tech Box Score
With the lopsided score, Mims was able to empty his bench
with 1:22 left, getting some guys in to enjoy the tournament victory.
Next up for the Panthers is a Sunshine State Conference
showdown with Rollins on Wednesday. The game will be played at the Clemente
Center, but the Panthers will have their hands full, as the Tars come in with a
record of 5-1 (1-0 SSC).
“They’re one of the top teams in this league every year,”
said Mims. “Rollins is gonna sit back and play zone all night, so hopefully we
can shoot the ball as well as we shot it tonight.”
Wednesday’s game is scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. tip.
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