Sports Lowdown

Derek Murphy - Credit: James Ragan Photography The Florida Tech Panthers got a big win on Wednesday, with a 105-90 triumph over the Tampa Spartans at the Clemente Center. The team was in a must-win situation, as they try to claw their way into the Sunshine State Conference tournament next week and they got the job done, with six players scoring in double figures. Derek Murphy scored a team-high 24 points to lead the Panthers. He was 8-for-9 from the field and hit all eight of his free-throws. Just for good measure he had six rebounds and one steal.  “Every game he seems to get better and this was the best game of his career,” said Panthers coach Billy Mims. “He’s a sophomore who’s really coming into his own.” Jordan Majors had 22, Patrick Anderson added a double-double with 19 points and 11 assists. He was 6-for-9 from the floor and hit all four of his shots behind the arc. Sam Daniel scored 17 points and Rafael Casanova and Robert Booth chipped in with 1...

Sam Daniel - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography The Florida Tech Panthers won their second straight game Saturday, getting a 102-97 victory over the Embry-Riddle Eagles. The victory completes the season sweep for the Panthers, who beat the Eagles in Melbourne back on January 4 on a Sam Daniel buzzer-beater . With the Eagles being a provisional member of the Sunshine State Conference this season, the victory does not help Florida Tech in the standings, but it should give them momentum heading into the last two games of the season, both at home. All five Florida Tech starters finished in double figures, led by 25 from Sam Daniel . Jordan Majors had 19, Patrick Anderson 18, Derek Murphy 16 and Rafael Casanova 15. Daniel had about 20 family members in the crowd on Saturday, per head coach Billy Mims, who talked to Jim Mitchell at the conclusion of the game. It was a good night for the Daniel family to make the trip. The Panthers (14-12, 6-10 SSC) led for o...

Sam Daniel - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography  The Florida Tech Panthers had six players in double figures Wednesday, storming back from a 42-36 halftime deficit to take down the Lynn Fighting Knights, 97-89 at the Clemente Center. “This was like a playoff game,” said Panthers head coach Billy Mims. “If we wanna play beyond next week, we needed this win.” Sam Daniel led the charge for the Panthers, scoring 27 points. Rafael Casanova scored 20, Derek Murphy 17, Jordan Majors 13 and Robert Booth rounded out the scoring with 11. Michael Milligan started and played eight minutes, but he did not score. Things looked bleak for the Panthers as the game got underway. The Fighting Knights went on a 10-0 run to start and the Panthers were missing both their inside and outside shots, getting nothing to fall. “I think we spotted them the first six minutes and 10 points,” said Mims, who was issued a warning during that early stretch, for jawing at the offici...

Jordan Majors - Photo credit : James Ragan Photography Wednesday was what’s known as an Athletes Supporting Athletes night at the Clemente Center and the crowd showed up in a big way. Unfortunately, the FIT men fell short, losing to the Eckerd College Tritons, 92-87 at the Clemente Center. “There’s no coach in the country that’s more appreciative of his student body than I was tonight,” said Panthers coach Billy Mims. “I wish we could’ve completed the comeback. It was a great game because of the crowd. The sixth man deserves a tremendous amount of credit.” That crowd had a lot to cheer early, as three-pointers from Sam Daniel and Jordan Majors had the Panthers up 6-0, 50 seconds into the game. Robert Booth followed that with a dunk, before Trevon Young finally got the Tritons on the board with a jumper 2:33 into the contest. Majors led the Panthers with 24 points and Daniel and Derek Murphy had 15. Patrick Anderson finished with 14, putting four Panthers in double...

Jordan Majors - James Ragan Photograaphy The Florida Tech Panthers took all the Palm Beach Atlantic Sailfish could dish out on Saturday, withstanding a late charge by the home team, to earn a 76-73 Sunshine State Conference victory. “I was really, really pleased with how we never quit,” said Florida Tech coach Billy Mims, in his post-game interview with Jim Mitchell. “Guys could’ve given up, one more mistake could’ve killed us.” Florida Tech (11-6, 4-4 SSC) was led by Jordan Majors 22 points and got 18 from Sam Daniel , who also had 14 rebounds. In the end, this game came down to free-throws, with the Sailfish missing three of their final four free-throws down the stretch and going 8-for-19 overall. On the flip side, the Panthers were 7-for-7 for the game, hitting just two from the charity stripe in the second half. The Sailfish (7-9, 3-6 SSC) led 5-3 with 18:29 left in the first half and never led again. The Panthers got off to a fast start, with Majors, Pat Anderso...

Majors (20) Vs. Bluefield State The Florida Tech Men’s basketball squad got a lopsided victory in the nightcap of the Florida Tech Thanksgiving tournament, taking down Bluefield State (WV) 94-76.  The Panthers victory followed the first game, that saw William Jewell College beat Tuskegee, 76-58. Florida Tech got off to a quick start and never looked back, ending the night with four players in double figures. Jordan Majors led the way with 25 for FIT. “Jordan is just playing outstanding basketball,” said Florida Tech head coach Billy Mims. “It seems like every game he gets a little bit better.” Majors also was the high assist man with eight, while turning the ball over only once. Patrick Anderson added 16 points for the Panthers, Derek Murphy had 15 and Robert Booth ended the night with 12, including four dunks. Mims was also impressed with Murphy, who’s mom has been in town for the last couple games and Mims said that Derek is excited to have her here and...