Nova Southeastern wins second SSC Tournament Championship, earns berth to NCAA Tournament
Nova Southeastern wins second SSC Tournament Championship
KISSIMMEE, FL (Women’s Basketball) – The third-seeded Nova Southeastern Sharks upset the top-seeded Tampa Spartans, 64-55, in the 2014 Sunshine State Conference Women’s Basketball Championship final to claim their second conference tournament title, first since 2007-08. Nova Southeastern (25-4) was picked by the conference coaches to win the SSC regular-season title, but the Sharks finished the conference slate tied for second with Rollins and were positioned as the third seed due to tiebreakers. The Sharks defeated the Tars, 80-70, in the tournament semifinals before taking down Tampa (22-6). Nova Southeastern will earn a spot in the NCAA Division II Tournament, where it advanced to the quarterfinal (Elite-Eight) round a season ago.
The Sharks took a 37-26 lead over the Spartans at halftime and then opened the second half with a 3-pointer by Danielle Robinson.
Robinson finished the game with 14 points shooting 3-of-6 from behind the arc and 5-of-10 from the field. Nova Southeastern’s Taylor Buie was on fire from behind the arc all tournament long.
The sophomore hit a tournament-best 11 3-pointers to averaging nearly four per game. Buie was named the 2014 SSC Women’s Basketball Most Valuable Player. She was also named to the All-SSC Second Team on Friday. Seniors Amanda Burakoski (12 points) and Richelle Carach (13 points) also finished in double figures for the Sharks.
Tampa’s Ellen Nurmi (10 points) and Aisha Rodney (13 points) finished with double-digits. Buie, Burakoski, Robinson and Rodney were all named to the 2014 SSC Women’s Basketball All-Tournament Team. Joining them were Chachi Guzman (Saint Leo) and Illyssa Vivo (Tampa).
