TAMPA, Fla. – The Palm Beach Atlantic men's basketball team traveled across the Sunshine State for a conference match against Tampa.

The Sailfish (12-6, 6-4 SSC) didn't have their most efficient night from the floor, but showed resilience in a tough road environment. On a tough shooting night for PBA, the duo of Jamaal Walker and Will Lee came through to carry the offense. Walker scored 26 points, a new high in his PBA career. Lee tacked on 18 points of his own, including a dagger 3-pointer with 24 seconds left and a pair of free throws down the stretch to lift the Sailfish over the Spartans (6-12, 2-8 SSC), 77-72.

Walker's 26 points led the team. He also grabbed five rebounds and swatted a shot in the game. Lee had five rebounds and four assists with three steals in addition to his 18 points. Grant Ledford added 13 points with a team-high nine rebounds, four assists, and four steals. Marcus Montalvo helped facilitate the offense with a team-high nine assists while grabbing six rebounds and two steals. Trent McNair finished with nine points.

The game was tightly contested for the entirety of the first half. Neither team went on a large run, and the largest lead in the half did not grow larger than four points. Despite not shooting well in the first half, the Sailfish stayed in the game by getting to the free-throw line. The Sailfish converted on 8-of-11 attempts from the charity stripe in the half. PBA chased Tampa off the 3-point line and forcing turnovers. The Spartans went 1-for-6 from three in the period and turned it over 10 times, leading to nine points for the Sailfish.

A dunk by the hosts put Tampa ahead 34-30 with 44 seconds to play, but Ledford answered with a 3-pointer at the buzzer to make it 34-33 UT at halftime. Ledford and Lee led the Sailfish with nine points each in the period. The 'Fish were relieved to only trail by one after shooting 29 percent in the half.

The offense improved immensely for the Sailfish in the second half. PBA shot 60 percent in the period, highlighted by 21 points by Walker on 9-of-11 attempts. Tampa seized some momentum after a layup gave them a 60-54 lead with 8:17 to play. Walker responded by scoring 10 consecutive points for the Sailfish to tie the game at 64 with just over five minutes to play.

Walker and Ledford went to work down the stretch, supplying the buckets for the Sailfish. The former UT-Chattanooga teammates gave PBA a 72-70 lead after an emphatic dunk from Walker following a steal by Lee. The Sailfish point guard closed out the win for the 'Fish, hitting a clutch triple from the wing and a pair of free throws to seal the 77-72 win.

Each team had similar shooting splits for the game. PBA forced Tampa into 17 turnovers in the game, leading to 13 points. The Sailfish lost the rebounding battle but converted more chances beyond the arc and at the free-throw line. The Spartans tried to make up the difference with second-chance points but came up short on their home floor.

The Sailfish return home on Saturday for a tough matchup against Florida Southern. Tipoff in Rubin Arena is set for 4:00 p.m.