Tampa, Fla. – Lynn University's men's basketball team looked as though it would get its second win of the season against a nationally-ranked opponent but the Fighting Knights could not hang on, falling 65-62 to No. 21 Tampa on Saturday night. Chris Hall had a season-high 24 points on 7-of-15 shooting but his team dropped to 5-16 overall and 3-7 in the Sunshine State Conference.
Lynn's defense came to play from the get-go, shutting down the Spartans offense for much of the first half. At one point the Spartans were shooting just 15% and had committed seven turnovers as the Knights built up a double-digit advantage, 18-8.
Chris Hall took charge on offense, draining a three from the right wing to open the game and knocking down three free-throws on the next possession. He scored 15 of his points in the first half.
Down by 15, Tampa made a late first half charge to get things closer. The Spartans used a 15-2 run to pull to within two points but Cameron McCallum and Josh Garcia halted UT's momentum with a pair of baskets to give LU a 37-31 lead heading into the second period.
A 7-2 run to start the half brought Tampa to within a basket and the Spartans got their first lead of the game with 10:46 on the clock. The two teams exchanged baskets for much of the half as neither squad could go ahead by more than a point.
A three by Rashad Callaway gave UT its largest lead of the night, 58-55, but Hall immediately responded with a basket in the paint to close the gap by to one. With each possession seemingly becoming more and more important, Tampa was able to force a LU turnover with just 29.5 seconds remaining. On the ensuing play, Fred Woods converted on an old-fashioned three-point play to make it a two possession game.
Hall got the team back to within one with his second three of the night but Anthony Griffis knocked down both of his free-throws to make it 65-62.
The Fighting Knights return to action on Saturday, February 12, at 7:30 p.m. when they host Florida Southern. Fans can follow the action live by logging on to www.LynnFightingKnights.com and selecting "Game Central."
