MELBOURNE, Fla. - [Championship Central] - The Sunshine State Conference Women's Basketball Tournament Championship will tip off at 1:00 p.m. and the Men's at 4:00 p.m. on Sunday, March 5th. Tournament finals will be hosted by Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University at the ICI Center in Daytona Beach.
The SSC basketball championship doubleheader will be featured as part of the NCAA Division II Basketball Showcase. Both the men’s and women’s championship will be featured live from the ICI Center. The men's and women's final will be fully produced by the Niles Media Group as part of the NCAA Division II media rights package. Each game will be streamed live on WatchESPN and the ESPN app.
Final | Location: ICI Center - Daytona Beach | 1:00 PM - WatchESPN | PDF Bracket
No. 1 seed Eckerd College (24-4, 16-2) vs. No. 6 Florida Tech (15-13, 8-10)
How They Got There:
Eckerd defeated No. 8 seeded Lynn, 70-74, in St. Petersburg during the quarterfinal round. Anna Deegan led the game with 18 points as the Tritons held off a furious comeback attempt from the Fighting Knights (
Box). Eckerd then defeated No. 5 Tampa, 70-63, in the semifinals at the ICI Center in Daytona Beach, Florida. Kacie Juday led the way with 17 points and five total rebounds in the match up (
Box).
No. 6 Florida Tech posted a quarterfinal win over No. 3 seeded Rollins, 73-70, in Winter Park. It marked the seventh time a 6-seed has upset a 3-seed in SSC tournament history. DeLise Williams and Julie McCarthy provided the Panthers with 35 points, 15 rebounds, nine steals, and eight assists (
Box). Florida Tech then shocked No. 2 Florida Southern, 58-52, in the semifinals at the ICI Center. True freshman Gudlau Juliusdottir led the Panthers with 15 points and three assists. (
Box)
Matchup
Eckerd swept Florida Tech in the season series with a 65-53 win in St. Petersburg and then a 67-52 victory in Melbourne. The Panthers hold an 8-2 advantage over Eckerd in the last 10 regular season matchups. In their last postseason matchup, the Panthers defeated the Tritons on March 4th, 2016 in the quarterfinal round, 70-62.
Players to Watch
Victoria Vine and Kacie Juday of Eckerd were both named All-SSC First Team, with Vine also being named Player of the Year. Gudlau Juliusdottir is coming off 14 and 15-point games in subsequent rounds of the tournament. Julie McCarthy also had 12 points and two blocks in the semifinal against Tampa.
Other Notes
The 2017 Championship title game marks the first for the Eckerd program...Florida Tech's upset over Florida Southern marks the first No. 6/No. 2 upset in conference history....This will be the first appearance by a No. 6 seed in the title game...Florida Tech holds a 3-1 advantage over Eckerd in SSC Tournament Games...FIT owns four SSC Tournament Championships with the latest coming in 2001-02.
Final | Location: ICI Center - Daytona Beach | 4:00 PM - WatchESPN | PDF Bracket
No. 3 Seed Rollins College (20-10, 12-6) vs. No. 4 Palm Beach Atlantic University (16-12, 10-8)
How They Got There:
Rollins battled to defeat No. 6 seeded Lynn, 75-73, in Winter Park. Connor Mckim recorded an 11-point/11-assist double double in the Tars victory, while Jeff Merton led the game with 10 rebounds (
Box). The Tars battled back from an early deficit over came No. 2 seeded Eckerd at the ICI Center in Daytona Beach. Joey Galvis scored 21 on 7-of-13 shooting behind the arc (
Box).
Palm Beach Atlantic hosted and defeated No. 5 Tampa, 66-63. Bakari Warthen paced the Sailfish with 17 points, six rebounds, two blocks, and two steals in 33 minutes on the hardwood (
Box). PBA then outlasted top seeded Barry 97-95 in overtime at the ICI Center on Saturday evening. Warthen and Grant Gullett both had double doubles in the upset victory (
Box).
Matchup
Rollins took the season series from Palm Beach Atlantic. The Tars defeated the Sailfish 59-47 in Winter Park on January 7th and 80-72 on January 28th in West Palm Beach. Rollins owns a 8-2 advantage between the two squads over the last five years. The Sailfish's last win over the Tars came on January 16th, 2016 in Winter Park (88-86).
Players to Watch
RC's Jeff Merton was named All-SSC second team while Conner Mckim was selected Freshman of the Year. Merton averages 13.9 points and 5.6 rebounds per game for the Tars, while Mckim is providing Rollins with 10.6 points and 4.0 steals per game this season. PBA's Wrathen is averaging 13.2 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 1.75 steals per game, while Gullett is providing the Sailfish 12.7 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. Both had double-doubles in the semifinal win over Barry.
Other Notes
The 2017 basketball championship marks the first for Palm Beach Atlantic...Rollins owns four SSC tournament championships, including back to back in 2009-10 and 2010-11....Rollins last played in the tournament championship in 2015-16 (L. to FSC, 72-66)...PBA is a provisional member of the Sunshine State Conference.
Tournament Information:
Finals will be held at the
ICI Center on the campus of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach.
Please contact SSC Assistant Commissioner Robert Brennecke with any questions or media inquiries.
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