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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern men’s basketball team (5-5, 1-1 SSC) will return to Sunshine State Conference action Wednesday, Jan. 4 at 7:30 p.m. when they host the Florida Tech Panthers (8-2, 1-1) at the NSU Arena in the Don Taft University Center. The game will be broadcasted live on 640 Sports.

The Sharks are coming off two weeks of rest as their last contest was held during the Cruzin Classic on Dec. 19. During the NSU hosted Cruzin Classc, the Sharks went 1-1 with an overtime loss to now-25th ranked West Georgia (80-76) and a calendar-year ending win over Keene State (83-70).

“We’ve had a great week on the practice floor, probably as good as we’ve had for an extended period all season, so the holiday break has been good for us,” said head coach Gary Tuell. “We enjoyed several two-a-day practices last week and the guys worked hard and maintained their focus throughout. With no classes in session we’ve had the opportunity to focus on nothing but ball and I was pleased with the progress we were able to make.

“We went into the holiday break coming off two tough games against very good teams in West Georgia and Keene State. West Georgia just won the Holiday Tournament at Rollins and probably is playing as well as anyone in the South Region at this time, so there’s no shame in that result. We were right there in both games with them this season, so that’s encouraging. Keene State had a lot of firepower and is very talented and well-coached and I thought our guys did a great job defending them and running our stuff.

“That victory sent us into the break in good spirits and it carried over into practice the past week. Now we’ll settle into a Wednesday-Saturday routine for games the rest of the year with conference play. It’s time to find out what kind of team we’re going to be.”

The Sharks had an up-and-down start to the season and enter 2012 with a .500 record. They have dealt with several injuries throughout the year and have rarely had their entire starting lineup healthy. However, the team has reached near full strength as the rotation has started to balance out. The health comes in good timing, as the Sharks are preparing for one of the hottest teams in the SSC. With an .800 winning percentage, the Panthers have the best overall record in the conference.

“Florida Tech brings a very experienced and talented team into our house on Wednesday,” said Tuell. “In Simon Cummings, they probably have the premier guard in our league. Heck, he was on ESPN a couple weeks ago when he made 10 consecutive 3-pointers in a game, and not many Division-II players find their way onto the SportsCenter highlights so that tells you something about his ability. Julius Reed teams up with Cummings to give Tech a talented, experienced backcourt.

“Up front they have two very good big men in Derek Helleman and Edgar Eglitis, and that freshman from Louisville – Jermaine Jackson – has been tough for them, too. They will test your defense because they can score from anywhere on the court. They’ve already beaten Eckerd, and our guys found out how tough Eckerd is when we lost up there in December. There’s a reason Tech is picked fourth in the league in the preseason poll. They are an outstanding team.

The Sharks have not fared well in the past against Florida Tech as the Panthers hold a 25-11 record against NSU. Last season, the teams split the season series with each team winning at home. The last time the Panthers visited the Shark Tank, Robert Huntington (Sr., Perth, Australia), the Sharks’ current leading scorer at 13.8 points per game, had a game-high 18 points on 7-for-12 shooting.

“We still aren’t getting the consistency we need if we’re going to be a contender in the league,” confessed Tuell. “Some nights our inside guys play well, and other nights are perimeter guys play well, but we have yet to get everybody clicking at the same time. The same could be said of our individuals, although Rob Huntington has been steady most of the year and Lukas Roesch (Jr., Sugar Grove, Ohio) is certainly coming off a big weekend in the holiday tourney [Cruzin Classic] before the break. We will continue to play deep into our bench because we have 10 or 11 guys capable of contributing and helping us. We just don’t know from night-to-night who the best guys are going to be. It’s nice to have the depth, but it would be helpful to the coaching staff if we knew we could count on guys to play consistently.

“Florida Tech doesn’t have that problem. They have the same six or seven guys playing at a high level every night out. I will say that rotating two groups of five against Keene State worked out well for us. Everyone contributed something in that victory and maybe we’ll look at doing that again sometime in the future. Our guys are doing a better job of checking their egos at the door and putting the team first. They’re coming together as a team and it’s shown in practice the past week. Hopefully that will continue now that we’re moving into the heart of our conference schedule.”

Fans can listen to the game live on 640 Sports or watch the game HERE. Live stats will also be available HERE.

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