FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – With its first Sunshine State Conference victory already under its belt following Wednesday's 76-60 defeat of Palm Beach Atlantic, Nova Southeastern will look to double its league win total when it travels to face Tampa Saturday at 4 p.m. ET.
 
The Sharks' most recent trip to the Martinez Center was a wild one as head coach Gary Tuell's club overcame a 22-point second half deficit en route to a 73-69 win back on January 20, 2016. Trailing 54-32 with under 16 minutes remaining in regulation, Harrison Goodrick and Nikita Orap combined for 19 points as part of a 34-11 run that eventually put Nova Southeastern in front for the first time in the ball game at the 3:56 mark of the second half. The 'W' marked the fifth straight for the Sharks on the road against the Spartans, and with a sixth on Saturday will improve to 2-0 in the conference for the first time this decade.
 
For the sake of Shark fans, hopefully Nova Southeastern won't need a similar-type comeback this time around after a notable SSC-opening victory earlier this week. The Sharks used a 57.4 percent shooting effort, including 9-of-17 from deep, to knock off the Sailfish for the fourth consecutive time in the series between both programs. Goodrick led all scorers with 18 points, while Orap drained five three-pointers off the bench to go along with point guard BJ Edwards' perfect 6-for-6 performance from the field. The win was just what the doctor ordered after Nova Southeastern stumbled out the gate in its season debut a week ago.
 
With a bit of momentum now on their side, the Sharks face a Tampa team off to an inconsistent start to the 2016-17 season. After opening with back-to-back losses, including a narrow 91-86 defeat to nationally-ranked Alabama-Huntsville, the Spartans held on at home for a 68-67 win over Puerto Rico-Mayaguez on Wednesday.  The Tarzans had a chance for the upset at the buzzer, but saw their shot attempt rim out as time expired.
 
Forward Duke Shelton paced the Spartans with 16 points and 16 boards for his first double-double of the year, and now ranks third in the league in rebounds with an average of 9.7 per game. Meanwhile, sophomore Pat Bacon struggled with his shooting stroke, finishing 3-of-14 from the floor, but is a guy that can get hot at any time after posting 20.5 points and 5.0 assists per game in the two meetings with the Sharks a year ago.
 
For complete coverage of the SSC matchup, follow along on Twitter at @NSU_MBasketball and by clicking on the provided links on the schedule page.