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By ROD GIPSON
© St. Petersburg Times, published February 27, 2001
LAKELAND -- When Eckerd lost to Barry by 22 three weeks ago in Miami, Tritons coach Tom Ryan said it was the only time all season his team had been beaten up. Facing the same team Monday, Eckerd was far from beaten up. But the result hurt even more.
With Eckerd owning a 14-point second-half lead, Barry manufactured a huge comeback, posting a 73-70 victory and advancing to tonight's Sunshine State Conference championship game. For sixth-seeded Barry (18-10), the win marked its second high-profile victim in as many days. Before beating the No. 2-seeded Tritons, Barry topped No. 3 Tampa 67-62 to open the tournament. Barry faces Florida Southern, a 73-70 winner over Rollins in overtime, in the title game at 8.
Eckerd must await the selection process Sunday, hoping for a region bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament.
"Barry plays with a lot of heart and all the credit goes to them," said Ryan, named SSC Coach of the Year after coaching Eckerd to its second 20-win season. "You can't let things get away from you and then not make plays at the end of the game."
Eckerd made nothing but plays early on, establishing a 37-24 lead. Things looked even better when Lester Chang Fong hit a three-pointer to put the Tritons up 40-26 two minutes into the second half. But during the next 15 minutes, Barry outscored Eckerd 40-15, culminating with an unlikely four-point play that gave the Bucs the lead.
After a Robens Cherry jumper pulled Barry within 65-64, a foul on Chang Fong away from the basket send the Bucs' Curtis Tonge to the free-throw line. He missed both shots, but William Gladsford scooped up the rebound and laid the ball in to put Barry up for the first time since the opening basket.
The teams traded leads for the last four minutes before a Jason Junker jumper and two Mark Thomas free throws cemented the win. On the women's side, Rollins rode three straight regular-season crowns, a lofty national ranking and a senior-rich squad led by conference player of the year Jill Razor to a huge first-half lead and an 81-75 win over Tampa..
The second-round loss sent Tampa home at 19-9 awaiting a slim chance at a region bid. For Rollins (25-3), the victory set up a 5:30 p.m. title game today against Florida Tech, an 85-78 winner over Florida Southern, while avenging a tournament loss a year ago.
"We got behind right away," UT coach Tom Mosca said. "That was the big factor. That and the fact we missed a lot of free throws."
Rollins, ranked sixth nationally in Division II, opened with a 9-2 advantage that quickly grew to 18-8. By the time the Tars' Shannon Pranger converted a three-pointer with 11:45 on the first-half clock, UT was looking at a 25-10 deficit and a potential blowout.
But behind freshman forward Yushonda Morse and a shift to a quicker pace, the Spartans cut the margin to 10 and forged a second-half comeback, getting within 63-62 with less than seven minutes left.
That's when Rollins' experience and Razor reappeared. Razor scored 12 of her game-high 32 points during the final 6:30.