SAINT LEO, Fla. – The second-seeded Saint Leo Lions will host the third-seeded Florida Tech Panthers Thursday in the Sunshine State Conference tournament semifinals in the Marion Bowman Activities Center at 5 p.m.
 
Saint Leo (5-1) started the tournament off with a 67-58 win over Barry (2-5, seventh seed) Tuesday night. Florida Tech (4-3) held off Tampa (sixth seed) 90-84 in two overtime periods.
 
2021 SSC Tournament
The opening round of the Sunshine State Conference Men's Basketball Championship presented by S3 Design saw Saint Leo (no. 2 seed, def. no. 7 Barry 67-58), Florida Tech (no. 3 seed, def. no. 6 Tampa 90-84 2 OT), and Florida Southern (no. 4 seed, def. no. 5 Rollins 88-82) advance to the semifinals.
 
Overall no. 1 seed, Palm Beach Atlantic will host the fourth-seeded Florida Southern Moccasins in game five of the tournament where no. 2 Saint Leo hosts no. 3 Florida Tech in game six. The winners will play for the SSC Tournament Championship, scheduled for Sunday, March 21 at the highest remaining seed.
 
Head-to-Head
Saint Leo and Florida Tech will face-off for the first time since Jan. 25, 2020 after both games during this abbreviated 2021 schedule were postponed. In the January 25^th meeting, the Panthers came out on top 99-93 in overtime.
 
While playing in the Marion Bowman Activities Center, Saint Leo holds a 12-2 record over the last 14 games of action.
 
Saint Leo averages 80.0 points per game and the Lions' defense holds opponents to a 68.3 points per game average while Florida Tech averages 78.7 and allows 78.4 points per game.
 
2021 Season – Saint Leo
After dropping the first game of the season 79-75 to Tampa, the Lions continue to find winning ways, sitting at 5-1. The Green and Gold posted a 67-54 win over Tampa, in the same week they suffered the four-point loss, followed by a 79-71 win over Florida Southern, 99-75 win at Palm Beach Atlantic, a 93-73 win over Barry, before the 67-58 win over the Bucs in the SSC quarterfinals.

Rusty Moorer leads the Lions in scoring at 14.3 points per game. Frank Webb Jr. is second on the team at 13.2 ppg, tied with Cantia Rahming. Webb Jr. leads the team in steals with 14 on the season while hauling in 7.7 rebounds per game, second to Rahming's team-best 8.5.
 
Rahming holds the team best shooting percentage at .635 going 33-for-52 from the floor. Grant Disken, through six games, has the team's best three-point percentage at .526 going 10-of-19, three three-pointers behind Moorer's team leading 13 made on the season.

2021 Season - Florida Tech
The Panthers first seven games were postponed before opening up the season against Barry on February 24 where Florida Tech suffered a 102-83 loss. After two more straight losses, 77-71 against Barry (Feb. 25), 74-69 at Tampa (Feb. 27), the Panthers picked up their first win against Palm Beach Atlantic on March 3 73-60. Florida Tech currently rides a four-game win streak into the semifinals after a 79-75 win over Florida Southern (March 10), and back-to-back wins over Tampa, 86-77 on March 13 and the 90-84 double overtime win over the Spartans in the quarterfinals Tuesday.
 
The Panthers are led by Sesan Russell who averages a league best 23.9 points per game in players who have played in five games or more. Sean Houpt (13.3) and Mekhii Noble (11.0) round out the Panthers' double-digit scorers. Russell is the team leader in rebounds at 8.0 while he has a team-best 46 assists.
 
Noble is the team leader in field-goal percentage (.593, 35-59) as Russell has knocked down 22 three-pointers on a .355-percentage.

For the latest news, updates, and information on the Saint Leo men's basketball, be sure to visit SaintLeoLions.com. Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest Lions news by following Saint Leo Athletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
 
How to Watch
Lions fans are able to watch the game and follow live stats via the Sunshine State Conference Digital Network where the Green and Gold's home games will be streamed and carry live statistics. For viewing any of the Green and Gold's contests against conference opponents, go to sunshinestateconference.tv or directly to the Lions' portal HERE. For following along with the live stats, fans can view them HERE. For more coverage of the Saint Leo softball program or any of the University's intercollegiate events, go to saintleolions.com/coverage.

Keeping Our Lions Healthy & Safe
Saint Leo University Athletics is keeping our student-athletes healthy and safe by following a number of measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. This includes having student-athletes tested or screened on a regular basis, traveling in smaller groups, holding competitions without fans in attendance, avoiding overnight trips, and wearing masks when not competing. These safety standards meet those set by the NCAA Division II and the Sunshine State Conference President's Council. At Saint Leo University, the COVID-19 Incident Command Team also reviews the teams' safety protocol and monitors adherence on a regular basis.