LAKELAND, Fla. – The Sharks’ run of dominance in the Sunshine State Conference continued, as No. 2 Nova Southeastern clinched the program’s fourth consecutive SSC regular season championship – fifth overall – by defeating the Florida Southern Moccasins 101-95 on Wednesday evening at the Jenkins Field House. MJ Iraldi (31 points, seven rebounds, six steals) and Ryker Cisarik (29 points, nine rebounds) made strong efforts towards their candidacy for the Sunshine State Conference Player of the Year honor, the Bevo Francis Award and the Trevor Hudgins Award, leading the Sharks to the season sweep over Florida Southern.
During NSU’s dynastic run in the Sunshine State Conference, the Sharks have accumulated a record of 123-5 (0.961 winning percentage), going 70-3 against SSC opponents (including Sunshine State Conference Tournament/NCAA Regional Tournament games) since the 2021-22 season.
Records: No. 2 Nova Southeastern 24-1, 16-1 SSC | Florida Southern 20-7, 11-6 SSC
Score: No. 2 Nova Southeastern 101 | Florida Southern 95
Location: Jenkins Field House | Lakeland, Fla.
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First Half – The Sharks were able to get out to a 7-3 lead in the opening minutes of the SSC contest, as Ryker Cisarik, MJ Iraldi, Dallas Graziani and Alex Mangold all got involved on the scoreboard early. FSC ran off a 10-2 run, before Ross Reeves knocked down a three-pointer to cut the Mocs lead to 13-12. Alex Sessoms sparked a quick 6-0 run by NSU, while Mangold and Graziani added buckets, pushing the Nova Southeastern lead to 22-18. The Sharks and Moccasins continued to trade points back-and-forth for much of the remaining minutes of the first half, Cisarik knocked down a three point bucket before Iraldi gave NSU a brief shot of momentum with two consecutive steals followed by fast-break, transitions baskets, as Nova Southeastern took a 43-39 lead. In the final minute of the first half, a steal by Mangold allowed Graziani to set up Reeves for a lay-up, sending the Sharks into the break with a 55-49 advantage.
Second Half – NSU was able to take their first double-digit lead of the game in the first five minutes in the second half, as Tyler Eberhart, Graziani and Iraldi all notched points to push the advantage to 65-54. The Mocs did not let up, responding with a 17-6 run and tying the game at 71-71 midway through the second half. Neither team was able to gain much, if any separation, down the stretch as the SSC rivals totaled five lead changes over a five minute span before Cisarik recorded back-to-back buckets for NSU and gave the Sharks an 89-85 advantage. Nova Southeastern sealed the game, and the program’s fourth consecutive Sunshine State Conference regular season championship, at the free throw line, as the Sharks defeated the Mocs 101-95.
MJ Iraldi: 31 points (third consecutive game/seventh overall), seven rebounds, six steals
Ryker Cisarik: 29 points, 9-15 FG, nine rebounds, two blocks
The second-ranked Sharks return to the Rick Case Arena for a Sunshine State Conference game against Florida Tech on Saturday, February 22nd. Nova Southeastern will look to extend the program’s home winning streak to 77 consecutive games; tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m. To stay up-to-date on Sharks Men’s Basketball, be sure to follow on Instagram & X at NSU_MBasketball.
