Box Score MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – Playing without starting center
Mubashar Ali for the second straight game and without the services of starting guard
Kaleb Darrett Thursday, Florida Memorial University's men fought early but saw Ave Maria University pull away late in what ended up as a 91-73 defeat in the FMU Wellness Center.
Ali, who also missed FMU's previous game, sat out again Thursday with concussion-like symptoms while Darrett's absence was due to an undisclosed reason. The Lions were also without guard
Freddy Reeves Jr. for the second straight game due to an ankle injury.
Thursday's result meant the fourth loss in the past five game for the Lions (6-15, 3-9 Sun Conference), who came into the game in ninth place in the Sun Conference standings but still had a mathematical chance of possibly climbing up into the top six. While FMU, which will travel to TSC's top team Southeastern University this weekend, was upset-minded Thursday – it couldn't overcome Gyrenes leading scorer Leo Behrend dropping 41 points off the bench.
Florida Memorial junior guard
Quvondo Johnson once again carried the brunt of the load – finishing with a 19-point, 11-rebound double-double.
Jordan Collins, who got the start Thursday in the place of Darrett, scored 15, while senior
Jordan Martin added 17 points.
The Lions led by as many as five points midway through the first half and clung to a four-point advantage at two different times before halftime. FMU's downfall began with just under six minutes left in the first half, when it led 31-27 but saw the Gyrenes (15-7, 9-3) close out the half on a 12-1 run.
The second half mostly belonged to Ave Maria. FMU pulled within two (54-52) with 10:30 left in the game, but the Gyrenes began to pull away over the ensuing five minutes – stretching out their lead to as many as 17.
