FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – In a rematch of last season’s Sunshine State Conference tournament championship game, the second-ranked Nova Southeastern Sharks Men’s Basketball team, the four-time defending SSC regular season champions, began postseason play on Tuesday evening by defeating the Barry Buccaneers 116-79 on Tuesday night at the Rick Case Arena in the Sunshine State Conference tournament quarterfinals. MJ Iraldi, the reigning NABC/D2 CIDA National Player of the Week, scored a team-high 23 points, shooting 71% from beyond the arc, while Alex Mangold and Tommy Sala each scored 16 points off the bench. The Sharks improved to 17-2 against the Buccaneers under Head Coach Jim Crutchfield and have won each contest since November 28, 2018.
Nova Southeastern has now won 79 consecutive games at the Rick Case Arena, one shy of tying the NCAA Division II record for consecutive home wins, since February 26, 2020.
Records: No. 2 Nova Southeastern 28-1 | Barry 12-17
Score: No. 2 Nova Southeastern 116 | Barry 79
Location: Rick Case Arena | Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Get Social: Instagram & X – NSU_MBasketball
First Half – The Sharks were all over the Buccaneers from the game’s opening tip, as NSU quickly rushed out to an 11-2 lead. Ryker Cisarik got the scoring started, knocking down a three-pointer, while MJ Iraldi, Tyler Eberhart and Eli Allen all added points during the early run. Later in the half, Iraldi knocked down back-to-back three-pointers and pushed the NSU advantage to 29-9 over Barry. A 13-2 run by Nova Southeastern, which featured three-pointers from Iraldi and Dallas Graziani, as well as a converted and-one by Ross Reeves, gave the Sharks a 48-20 lead over Barry with just over five minutes remaining in the first half. Iraldi totaled 20 points in the half, including four three-point buckets, sending NSU into the break leading 57-28.
Second Half – Nova Southeastern continued to pour it on in the second half, opening up a 40 point advantage following a pair of free throws from Mangold, as NSU took an 86-46 lead. Tommy Sala scored five consecutive points for the Sharks, as part of a career-best 16 points, giving NSU a 96-56 advantage, The Sharks closed out their 17th straight win over the Bucs, 79th in a row at the Rick Case Arena, and began Sunshine State Conference tournament play with a 116-79 victory.
