MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – Coming into Saturday's game, Florida Memorial University's men knew its success against Keiser University and Sun Conference leading scorer Mark Gordon would be predicated on its ability to defend Gordon without sending him to the free throw line.
The plan worked for a while – as the Lions led by as many as seven early in the second half – but Gordon continued putting pressure on FMU's defense and ended up making more free throws himself than Florida Memorial did as a team in the midst of the FMU falling 88-80 to the No. 14 Seahawks Saturday in the FMU Wellness Center.
Gordon ended up shooting 18 free throws Saturday, knocking down 13 as he totaled a game-high 29 points. The Lions made just 11 of their 21 free throw attempts and were victim to a lopsided count of total fouls – with FMU being called for 25 fouls compared to 18 on Keiser.
Kaleb Darrett led the Lions (5-13, 2-7 Sun Conference) in scoring Saturday with 24. 7-foot junior center
Mubashar Ali registered a double-double of 14 points and 13 rebounds, while junior guard
Quvondo Johnson added 16 hard-earned points and six boards.
Keiser (16-3, 8-1) had four players finish with double digit point totals – including a 20-point performance to complement Gordon's 29.
Florida Memorial appeared poised to pull off what would've been a big upset early on. The Lions, who will enjoy a handful of days off before hitting the road to take on Sun Conference foe Warner University Thursday night, opened up a 43-33 lead on Keiser with just under two minutes to play in the first half. It was an impressive stretch for FMU because that 10-point lead was a byproduct of the Lions outscoring the Seahawks 37-15 after they fell behind 18-6.
After the Lions opened up their seven-point lead in the second half, Keiser University began to chip away at its deficit and take the momentum from FMU. Once Florida Memorial's lead was cut down to one with just under nine minutes to play, the teams traded one-point leads for three minutes. The Seahawks seized complete control of the game when it took a four-point lead with five minutes left in the second half and stretched that lead to 10 with just under a minute to play – closing the door on FMU's upset bid.
