BOX SCORE

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – After scoring only 24 points through the first 18 minutes Saturday, the Eckerd Tritons (6-1, 2-0 SSC) scored 47 in the final 22, capturing a 71-55 victory over the Nova Southeastern women’s basketball team (6-3, 0-2 SSC).
 
The opening stanza opened in hectic fashion, with the two squads tallying eight quick turnovers and only five points; a 3-2 lead for the Tritons. After Eckerd pushed its lead to 9-4 at the 11:47 mark, Danielle Robinson (Fr., Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) responded with a shot off the glass.
 
On the next trip down, Jada Buckner (Sr., Loudon, Tenn.) converted from the charity stripe after she was hacked laying in a fast break layup to knot the score, 9-9. Meixandra Porter (Jr., Chantilly, Va.) put the Sharks ahead, 13-11, dropping in a contested layup in transition with nine minutes left in the first half.
 
The Tritons fought back, going on a 9-0 run to close the half. Amy Buccilla knocked down the first of three triples, while Taylor Young knocked down a pair, her last coming as time ran out in the half.
 
Eckerd took a 33-22 lead into the intermission, facilitated by 10 points from Linsey Niles. Robinson was 4-of-7 from the field for NSU, good for eight points. The discrepancy in points was matched in turnovers committed, with the Sharks committing 17, while Eckerd limited its to six.
 
The Tritons’ run carried into the second half with Eckerd netting the first two buckets and extending the lead to 15 points, 37-22, forcing the Sharks to use a timeout. Robinson put the Sharks on the board for the first time in the half, draining a 3-pointer from the wing just past the 17 minute mark.
 
The Sharks' defense struggled to cool off the hot shooting hand of the Tritons, with Eckerd going on a 15-1 run over a 5:03 stretch, building a 54-26 lead.
 
Despite the Tritons leading by 29 at one point, the Sharks continued to battle through the remainder of the half. Buckner chipped in five points down the stretch for NSU, but the Tritons clung to a 16-point advantage, 71-55, at the final buzzer.
 
Buckner paced all scorers with 15 points, while three Tritons reached double figures. Niles tallied a team-high 14 points for Eckerd, while Kati Rausberg and Emilie Hesseldal each netted 11. The 71 total points the Sharks gave up was a season-high. 

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