Sports Lowdown

Jordan Majors - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography The Florida Tech Panthers were bounced from the Sunshine State Conference tournament on Wednesday, losing to number one seed Barry, 87-84 in Miami Shores. The loss ends the Panthers season, with a record of 15-14. Florida Tech were in a dog fight all night long and stood tall against a very high-powered Buccaneers offense. The visitors were especially strong in the first half, shooting 56 percent (14-of-25), including nine three-pointers. Jordan Majors and Patrick Anderson led the Florida Tech attack with 22 points apiece. Antonis Pefanis was 4-of-6 from beyond the arc and finished with 14. Arie Williams triple gave the Bucs a 23-17 lead, but Sam Daniel answered, cutting the lead to three. Daniel finished with 11. Back-to-back threes by Daniel and Jordan Majors tied the game at 26, with 8:05 to go. With the game tied at 33-33, Pefanis came off the bench and hit a triple, giving the Panthers a 36-33 lead. ...

Sam Daniel - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography The Palm Beach Atlantic Sailfish put a damper on Florida Tech’s Senior Day Saturday, beating the Panthers 80-76 in the regular season finale for both teams. Sam Daniel led the home team with 25 points, but FIT couldn’t overcome a sluggish second half that saw them get outscored 47-36. “In the second half, they forced us into a lot of turnovers,” said Panthers head coach Billy Mims. “We were real sloppy and they pressed us, turned it into a full-court game and we didn’t take advantage of the pressure.” To Mims point, his team turned it over 13 times in the second half, while only forcing eight. Senior Robert Booth finished with 12 points and 12 rebounds, while Patrick Anderson chipped in 13 and Jordan Majors had 10. The game was even for much of the first half, before the Panthers before Anderson and Majors hit consecutive threes to get Florida Tech a 31-20 lead. After Dakota Zinser hit one for PBA, senior Raf...

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...

The Saint Leo Lions had an amazing shooting night on Saturday, beating the Florida Tech Panthers 97-76 in a Sunshine State Conference Men’s basketball clash. Saint Leo had five guys in double figures, led by Antoine Tobias, who dropped in 26. Marcus Dewberry recorded a double-double with 19 points and a career-high 14 rebounds, Justin Satchell and Tyreece Brice had 15 and Junior Searcy added 11. Sam Daniel led the Panthers with 19, Jordan Majors had 14, Patrick Anderson 12 and Robert Booth added 10. The Lions (12-12, 6-8 SSC) got off to one of the hottest starts you will ever see in a basketball game, but Majors hit a couple three’s early, keeping the Panthers in it, 17-13. It wasn’t close for long, as the Lions hit 6-of-8 from three and Tobias had 11 points, many of those assisted by Dewberry, who had seven with 7:32 left in the half. They extended their lead to 42-31 with 4:01 left and extended their lead to 52-35 at the half. The home team was 20-of-27 from ...

Patrick Anderson - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography The Florida Tech men’s basketball team started well on Wednesday against the Florida Southern Moccasins, but lost all momentum in the closing moments of the first half and ended up on the short end of an 86-71 score. With the win, Florida Southern improved to 24-13 all-time as the visitor, against Florida Tech. Patrick Anderson led the Panthers with 19 points, including going 5-of-7 from three-point land, but the other big scorers, Sam Daniel had 15 and a team high eight rebounds, but was an uncharacteristic 0-for-5 beyond the arc and Jordan Majors finished with five points. Florida Southern (10-13, 8-6 SSC) won all the key statistical categories, including points in the paint 42-26, second chance points 8-6 and fast-break points, 6-0. None were costlier than points off turnovers. The Panthers 15 turnovers proved costly, as Florida Southern scored 25 points. “We played well tonight for about 15 minutes,” sa...

Robert Booth - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography Senor Robert Booth hit the game-winning shot with 6.6 seconds left, Saturday, propelling the Florida Tech Men’s basketball team to a come-from-behind win over Nova Southeastern, 75-74 in a must-win game for the Panthers. “On that last put-back, that was the play of the day for him,” said Panthers coach Billy Mims of Booth, during his post-game interview with Paul Van Scott. “He struggled at the line today, but I didn’t make the change, I stuck with Bobby because I said he’s gonna make a defensive play or make a play and you know what, my faith in Robert Booth paid off.” Booth finished with 17 points and 17 rebounds, while Patrick Anderson went for 19 and 11. Derek Murphy and Jordan Majors finished with 16 and 14 points, respectively. Sam Daniel , who is the second leading scorer in the Sunshine State Conference behind Majors, was just 3-for-12 from the field, but hit two big three pointers at crucial times in the...

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 - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography The Florida Tech Men’s basketball team had a tough task Saturday, when they traveled to Rollins. For the first 20 minutes, they looked up for it, as they led the Tars 38-32 at the half. Unfortunately for the Panthers, the home team put the pedal to the medal in the second half, scoring 59 points and winning 91-82 in a Sunshine State Conference game. It was the second straight devastating loss in the conference for the Panthers, who dropped a very controversial home game to Saint Leo on Wednesday. “We must be the best first half team in America,” said Florida Tech head coach Billy Mims, in his post-game interview with Jim Mitchell. “But we can’t play 40 minutes of consistency to save or lives.” The Panthers (11-8, 4-6 SSC) were up 12 against Saint Leo and up six at Rollins at the half, but lost both games. Florida Tech got off to a good start Saturday, with Jordan Majors hitting two quick threes. Things sagged...

Robert Booth - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography The Florida Tech Panthers had their chances on Wednesday, but the Saint Leo Lions snatched victory from the jaws of defeat, beating the Panthers 90-79 in overtime. The game was much closer than the score would indicate, as the Lions outscored the Panthers 14-3 in overtime, with 11 of those points coming on free throws. The Panthers (11-7, 4-5 SSC) were frustrated at times down the stretch, combined with Saint Leo getting seemingly every call to go their way at crucial times in the game. Sam Daniel led all scorers with 28 points for Florida Tech, Patrick Anderson and Jordan Majors had 19 each.  The first half went the way of the Panthers as they held Saint Leo’s big three of Justin Satchell had seven points, Tyreece Bryce did not score and Marcus Dewberry had six points. Meanwhile, the Panthers closed on a 12-5 run to end the half and went to the locker room, up 12. “Our game plan was outstanding an...

Patrick Anderson - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography Junior guard Patrick Anderson led all scorers Wednesday with 25 points, but in the end, it was not enough to keep the Florida Tech men from dropping a 98-90 decision at Florida Southern. The home team shot Florida Southern shot 60.3 percent (38-of-63) from the floor, including 9-of-10 from three-point range. They hit 13-of-18 from the charity stripe. Florida Tech shot 41.4 percent (29-of-70) and was just 9-of-27 from three. “We just didn’t shoot the ball very well,” said Florida Tech head coach Billy Mims, in his postgame interview with Paul Van Scott. “When you dig a deep hole, you can’t try to fight out of it and make mistakes.” Anderson made eight of his 16 shots and buried four from long range, but off shooting nights from  Sam Daniel and Jordan Majors , who had huge games in last week’s thrilling 109-106 win over Embry-Riddle, meant that the Panthers struggled offensively and that was the differen...

Sam Daniel (0) and Jordan Majors combined for 68 points on Wednesday In one of the most exciting finishes you will see, Sam Daniel hit a buzzer-beating three-pointer Wednesday night, giving the Florida Tech Panthers a heart stopping 109-106 victory over Sunshine State Conference foe Embry-Riddle. Jordan Majors was the man with the ball in his hands as the read 4.7 seconds. He was going to the hoop, but the Eagles sealed it off and Majors found Daniel open and got it to him. Daniel beat the clock and the Eagles, with the biggest shot of his career. “Jordan driving down the court and I credit him for being focused enough to see me open and it was ballgame from there,” said Daniel after the game. “Coach tells us if you feel like you’re open take the shot. Him giving us that green light builds everyone’s confidence, it’s good to know that you have that green light and you’re not gonna be faulted, if you do take the shot.” “This is my 13 th season here and I don...

Photo credit: James Ragan Photography It was a tough day at the office for the Florida Tech Panthers on Saturday, as they dropped a 101-49 decision to Division I power Florida Gulf Coast, in Fort Myers. This was essentially an exhibition for the Panthers, who were coming off a tough overtime loss at Lynn on Friday night and didn’t even arrive at their hotel until 1:30 Saturday morning. Panthers coach Billy Mims didn’t use the late arrival as an excuse and his team certainly didn’t play tired to start the game. They came out on a 1-0 run, with Patrick Anderson and Sam Daniel knocking down a couple early three-pointers. “We opened up man-to-man, toe-to-toe with them we played good D and I thought we executed well,” Mims said. The Panthers went up 12-4 with 4:35 gone in the half and the Eagles fought back, to take a 16-15 lead. They stretched it to 20-15 with 11:25 to go and Daniel cut it back to two, with another three-point bucket. Robert Booth got the Panthers ...

Jordan Majors - Photo credit: James Ragan Photography The Florida Tech Men’s Basketball team overcame a 17 point second half deficit at Lynn Friday night, but the Fighting Knights proved to be too much in overtime, taking down the Panthers 102-94 in a Sunshine State Conference battle. It was an odd night for Florida Tech, who sat their three best players for the first 7:21 of the contest for what coach Billy Mims said in his post-game interview, was a violation of team rules. “We had some guys that weren’t where they were supposed to be when they were supposed to be there,” he said. “We had team rules that were violated, nothing serious. It was more punctuality and professionalism that anything else.” The starters that were in held their own, as they were only down 11-6 when the normal starting lineup made their first appearance. Unfortunately, no matter who was in there, the Panthers were unable to get any offensive consistency for most the game. Free throws by ...