No. 9 UWF men's basketball doesn't feature the blue-chip prospects or transfers of many others teams. They're making history nonetheless. Eric J. Wallace
The University of West Florida just never got it going in the NCAA Division II Tournament.
Second-seeded UWF was eliminated, 90-73, by No. 7 seed Barry University on Saturday at Morehouse College in Atlanta. UWF trailed the entire game as Barry advanced to face Claflin in the South Region semifinal after the Panthers defeated Clark Atlanta 72-61.
The Argos simply could not defend Barry University as the Buccaneers shot 54.4 percent from the field. Barry also shot 42 percent on 3-pointers, splashing 11-of-26 attempts.
UWF was outscored 44-27 in the first half as the Argos’ senior trio of Marvin Jones, Moter Deng and leading scorer Darryl Tucker combined for just five total points.
Tucker scored just five points in the loss and managed three rebounds, fouling out with just over three minutes remaining.
Sunshine State Conference Player of the Year Elvar Fridriksson led Barry with 23 points and nind assists while shooting 3-of-6 shooting from 3-point range. Sunday Dech finished with a double-double of 15 points and 11 rebounds for Barry.
Jones finished with 21 points and four rebounds, finishing 4-of-10 from 3-point range while Benson had 17 points, five rebounds and five assists.
The loss ends the greatest season in UWF men’s basketball history. The Argos won the first Gulf South Conference Tournament championship in school history in 2018.
UWF also broke school records for single-season wins, conference wins and winning percentage. Their 11-game win streak matched a school record, set by the school’s first-ever men’s basketball team.
Eric J. Wallace can be reached at [email protected] or 850-525-5087.