LAKELAND, Fla. – The Palm Beach Atlantic men's basketball team played a tough road game against SSC-opponent Florida Southern on Saturday night.

The matchup was tightly contested the whole way. PBA (3-5, 1-2 SSC) led the majority of the first half thanks to a big first half from Will Lee. Tonight's matchup included 15 lead changes and 12 ties before Florida Southern (3-5, 1-2 SSC) eventually won out.  The Mocs went 7-for-12 from beyond the 3-point line in the second half which allowed them to pull away down the stretch. FSC won a battle against the 'Fish, 83-76.

Lee finished with 19 points, all coming in the first half, shooting 5-for-7 from 3-point range and grabbing four rebounds. Jules Jasmin recorded 16 points and five rebounds. With his performance tonight, Jasmin became PBA's DII-era leader in career points, passing De'Ondre Jackson's total of 1,431. Jakob Hester added 11 points with three rebounds. Alexander Gorton tallied nine points with six assists and five rebounds. Nate Ward contributed eight points from the bench with two rebounds and two steals.

The Sailfish got off to a strong start in the first half, jumping to a quick 11-3 lead with 3-pointers from Gorton, Jalen Cooper, and Lee. That was the largest lead of the night held by either team. Just past the 10-minute mark in the first, FSC trimmed the Sailfish lead to one. PBA gained some breathing room with a 5-0 run with a layup from Jasmin and a triple from Lee to take a 24-18 lead with eight minutes remaining in the period. The 'Fish led almost entirely in the first half; however, a 3-pointer by the Mocs with 46 seconds left gave the hosts a 36-35 lead at the break.

PBA shot 58 percent from 3-point land in the half on 12 attempts. The Sailfish also outshot the Mocs from the field with 48 percent shooting compared to 38 percent for FSC.  The hosts did hold a 7-0 advantage in offensive rebounds at the break, a theme that continued in the second half.

Both teams traded buckets throughout the second half. Neither team held a lead larger than four points until there were less than five minutes remaining. Trailing by three with a little over three minutes left, Ward forced a key turnover by the Mocs, but PBA failed to convert on offense which would have cut the lead to one. It was a five-point swing as FSC made the 'Fish pay with a 3-pointer to take a 79-73 lead. After cutting the deficit to five the Sailfish got another stop, but couldn't secure the rebound leading to extra possessions and free throws for the Mocs. The hosts closed the game at the line to win 83-76.

FSC grabbed eight more offensive rebounds in the second half compared to just two for PBA. Overall, the Mocs won the rebounding battle, 40-28. Both offenses executed well as each team shot over 50 percent in the second half.

PBA travels down to Boca Raton, Fla. for an exhibition game against NCAA Division I school Florida Atlantic on Wednesday. The game against the Owls tips off at 7 p.m.