ST. PETERSBURG, Fla.- The #2 Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers matched their best defensive effort in a Suncoast Conference game in program history Wednesday night on the road at St. Petersburg, holding the Titans to just 53 points and 38% shooting in a 76-53 victory to improve to 22-1 on the year.  

 

It was a competitive game early on as the Bucs and Titans traded blows to a 12-12 tie five minutes in.  They continued to go back and forth over the next few minutes as Jaden Campbell sparked the Bucs off the bench and Kobe Johnson tried to keep the Titans level with 2nd ranked FSW.  A free throw from Campbell kept the game knotted at 21 with 8:21 to go in the first half and it neither team was able to create separation over the next five minutes as the score remained tied at 27 with just over three minutes remaining in the period.  St. Pete took their largest lead of the game at three with 1:42 to go in the half, but the Bucs answered by scoring the final six points of the half to take a three point lead of their own into the break at 38-35.  

 

The score changed hands 14 times in the first half with things tied on seven different occasions.  The Bucs shot just 35% in the half while St. Pete shot 47%, but FSW forced 10 first half Titan turnovers, turning those into 11 points to make the difference in the first 20 minutes.  

 

It was a one point game early in the second when the Bucs went back to their roots, tightening up the defensive pressure and suffocating the Titans to go on a 10-0 run to take a 50-39 lead with 13:29 to go.  They slowly began to pull away, using the play of Simeon Kirkland and Terry Roberts off the bench to do so.  A Roberts steal and dish to Kirkland on the break pushed the Bucs lead to 19 with 6:29 left before Roberts fifth steal of the game led to a run out layup by Keon Ellis to make it 69-47 FSW.  The Bucs eventually ballooned the lead to 27 before finishing off a 76-53 win.  

 

The Bucs defense held St. Pete to just 28% shooting in the second half and just 18 points while forcing 13 turnovers in the period.  The 53 points allowed is tied for the lowest total in a conference game in FSW history, equaling a 2018 date against Polk State.  

 

Ellis led the Bucs with 15 points and 8 rebounds in the win while Kirkland came up big off the bench with 14 points and 7 boards and Roberts did the same with 10 points and 5 steals to go along with a +20 plus/minus rating in 19 minutes of action.  

 

The win is the 15th straight for FSW to push the Bucs to 22-1 overall on the year.  They remain unbeaten in Suncoast Conference play at 5-0 which puts them two games ahead of the field with seven to go.  St. Petersburg falls to 10-12 overall and 1-4 in league play.  

 

The Bucs are back at home for the first time in 10 days on Saturday when they host Hillsborough in a 2 PM tip at Suncoast Credit Union Arena.