LAKELAND, Fla. – The Fire returned to action in a big way Saturday. Southeastern University used efficient second-half shooting and stingy defense to push past No. 15 Florida Memorial University for an 88-80 upset in the Sun Conference opener at The Furnace.
SEU turned a six-point intermission deficit and tied the contest only seven minutes into the second half, 55-55, on a Ja'Quay Randolph layup. Less than five minutes later, tied at 66, it was Joshua Blazquez with a layup and back-to-back treys that pushed the Fire ahead for good, 74-68. The nationally-ranked Lions would not go away, but they could get no closer than four points in the final five minutes of play.
After dropping both ends of the season series last year, SEU (2-3) takes the first match-up of the 2024-25 campaign. The Lions (5-1) suffered their first loss in six games this season.
Johnson gave SEU its first lead with a 3-pointer for a 5-2 edge at 18:22 of the first half. Florida Memorial three minutes later turned a slim 13-12 lead into a double-digit advantage, 22-12. The Lions led by as many as 11 points, 42-31, before the Fire cut it down to six, 44-38, by half.
In the second 20 minutes, the Fire outscored the visitors, 50-36, hitting 17 of their 25 shot attempts, including 9-of-13 from 3-point range.
Ahmad Johson led the Fire with 22 points on 8-of-11 shooting with a trio of 3-pointers and four assists.
Blazquez, Nelson Reynolds and Randolph all came off the bench to combine for 42 of the team's 88 points, along with 10 rebounds and five assists. Blazquez finished with 15 points, including four treys, and three assists. Reynolds downed four of his own triples for 14 points, while Randolph made 5-of-7 shots for 12 points and pulled down eight boards.
Nathan Mikkelson added a pair of 3-pointers as part of his 11-point, nine-rebound effort. Derek Murphy chipped in seven points and three assists.
The Lions' Calvin Payton dropped seven treys for a game-best 27 points.
The Fire return to action on Wednesday, when they travel to Brunswick, Ga. to take on Coastal Georgia. Tip-off is at 7:30 p.m..
