WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Palm Beach Atlantic men's basketball team defeated Embry-Riddle in a close matched Saturday afternoon game in Rubin Arena with a final score of 80-77. The Sailfish (6-9) collected their second Sunshine State Conference victory of the season while the Eagles (8-11) fell to 1-7 in the conference.
PBA started the game off with eight straight points before the Eagles could get on the board. From that point both teams showed strong offense as both teams put up relatively high numbers on the half. Bakari Warthen knocked down three of his four three-point shot attempts and went 5-for-9 from the floor giving him 15 first half points. De'Ondre Jackson also helped the Sailfish maintain a lead for just about the entire half as he went 3-for-3 from the field which included a three-point bucket as well giving him seven points in the first 20 minutes of play. The 'Fish held a strong lead until 3 minutes left in the half as Embry-Riddle went on an eight-point run thanks to Tylin Fuller-Lockett knocking down back-to-back threes. In the final two minutes there were four lead changes but ultimately the Sailfish were on top 42-41 going into the locker rooms thanks to a Michael Stones layup with just one second on the clock.
The Sailfish continued their strong play in the second half. Despite a few runs by the Eagles the Sailfish stayed on top for the majority of the second half. PBA shot 50 percent going 14-28 from the floor with 19 rebounds as they put up 38 points. Jules Jasmin scored 10 points in the half as he went 3-for-3 from the field. The Eagles tried to foul their way back into the game but simply could not thanks to clutch free throw shooting down the stretch. Jasmin put the exclamation point on the win as he hammered home a thunderous put-back jam to put the game 80-76. The Eagles made a free throw on the following possession but that was it for them putting the final at 80-77 in favor of the Sailfish.
Warthen's strong first half propelled him to be the games top scored with 18 points. Warthen also added five rebounds and one assist to the game tonight. Jackson has performed well as of late and tonight was no different as he knocked down 5 buckets, one of which was from beyond the arc. Along with his 15 points, Jackson grabbed five rebounds and collected four assists to boot. Jasmin had 11 points in the contest and Malek Barber had nine. Andrew Moemeka pulled down seven boards in just 11 minutes of play tonight while scoring four points.
The Sailfish will return to action next Wednesday as they travel to Miami Shores, Fla. to take on the Barry Bucs on Jan. 16. Tip-off is slated for 7:30 pm.
