Lakeland, Fla. - The Southeastern Men's Basketball team defeated Ave Maria Gyrenes 75-72.
The Fire and Gyrenes got off to a good start early in this contest, exchanging leads and buckets on the offensive side of the ball. The Fire trailed by as many as nine in the first half and were able to even the score at 27-27 with 5:48 remaining in the half. The Fire regained the lead with a 3-point shot coming in from Reggie Mesidor, but couldn't hold onto the lead with Gyrenes answering and tying the game 38-38 with six seconds remaining.
Alaowei Talent-Fitzgerald led the Fire in points with nine and also led in rebounds with four. Mesidor was not far behind with seven points of his own and added two rebounds and two assists. Both Mesidor and Talent-Fitzgerald led in points from off the bench.
As a team Fire shot 14-33 from the field, 5-14 from the 3-point line, and 5-5 at the free throw line. Gyrenes shot 16-33 from the field, 5-17 from 3-point land, and 1-2 from the free throw line.
The Fire started the second half with a 9-2 run which extended their lead to seven within the first four minutes of play. The Fire added to their lead and led by as many as 14 with 10:58 remaining. The Fire held onto a healthy 70-57 lead with 5:07 remaining. The Gyrenes hit a good 3-pointer to bring the game within ten and proceeded to go on a 13-5 run to bring themselves within five with 1:02 remaining in the game. A costly turnover from the Fire put the Gyrenes in position to make an easy layup to put themselves within three, 75-72 with 39 seconds left. The Gyrenes put up a shot that would've tied the game at the buzzer but it didn't connect and the Fire held onto their lead to win the game 75-72.
Individually, Riley Matticks and Karl Jeanty both led the Fire in points with 16 a piece. Matticks added six rebounds and two assists, Jeanty added three rebounds. Alaowei led the team in rebounds with seven, added 15 points, and a steal. Deshaun Osborne led the Fire in assists with five and added five points himself.
Off the bench, Mesidor recorded 14 points, four rebounds, two assists, and a steal.
The Fire 12-14 (6-13 TSC) clinched a spot in the Sun Conference Tournament with tonight's win over Ave Maria and will be heading to Thomas University this Saturday, February 20th at 4 P.M. for their regular season finale.
