Eagles outlast Northwest Florida State

By: Luke Fay, fayl@tcc.fl.edu  

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (March 25, 2021) – Tallahassee Community College's men's basketball team jumped back into the winner's column with a 94-78 victory against Northwest Florida State on Thursday night. 

The Raiders jumped out to an early 12-11 lead, however, it would prove to be the last lead Northwest Florida State would see all game. DeAngelo Ware promptly drilled a three-pointer to take the lead right back for Tallahassee with 15:30 to play in the first half. Ware led the team with a double-double in the first half notching 13 points and 10 rebounds. 

Tallahassee, at the 10:18 mark, pushed the lead to double-digits, 31-21, with a circus three-point play by Amir Gholizadeh. Gholizadeh finished with 12 points on 3-of-5 shooting from the three-point line. 

The Eagles led by 18 points following a three-point make by Gholizadeh with 15 seconds remaining in the half. The Raiders would then close on a 5-0 run to cut into the deficit making it a 13-point lead at half, 53-40. 

Northwest Florida State battled back following the break, outscoring the Eagles 20-10 over the first nine minutes of the second half to make it a one possession game at 63-60. 

The Eagles responded with a 15-2 run to make the score 78-62 with 6:55 remaining in the game. The run was fueled by an acrobatic reverse layup by Ware and three straight three-point buckets from guard El Ellis. 

Northwest Florida State was ultimately unable to fight back into the game, with the Eagles prevailing by a comfortable 16-point margin. 

Ellis finished with 24 points. Ware posted 21 points and 15 boards. Josh Rubio added nine points. 

With the win, the Eagles moved into a tie with Chipola College for first place in the Panhandle Conference. Tallahassee and Chipola both sit at 12-3 with one game remaining. 

A win in Saturday's finale against Pensacola State College would set a school record for conference wins in a season. It would also crown the Eagles back-to-back Panhandle Conference Champions for the first time since 1996 and 1997. 

Saturday's game at Pensacola State is scheduled to begin at 8:30 p.m.