Falcons Fly Past Keiser

TEMPLE TERRACE, Fla. - The Florida College Falcons took down the Keiser University Seahawks 91-76 on Friday night in Conn Gymnasium.

FC trailed 2-0 early, before going on a 13-0 run to take a 13-2 lead with 15 minutes remaining in the first half. The Seahawks made their own runs, and teams traded leads, and eventually, the score was tied 40-40 at halftime.

The Falcons started the second half on a 17-1 run in the first 6 minutes to take a 67-41 lead. FC would eventually stretch the lead to twenty. Keiser would eventually cut the deficit to nine, but that was the closest they'd get.

Matt Simpson led the team in scoring. He put up 27 points, grabbed 6 boards, and handed out 7 assists. Phat Cleveland put up 17 points on 4-for-6 from deep while battling foul trouble most of the night. Cleveland has five straight double-digit performances. He's also put up three of his best shooting percentages of the season in the last three games. DJ Doakes continued his strong play, dropping 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting. Doakes took three charges and played a season-high 32 minutes on the night, after just playing a former season-high 28 minutes last game. Doakes has started all 27 games for the Falcons this year. He has scored double-figures in four straight games, the longest such streak for him as a Falcon. Anthony Bittar put up 12 points and 7 dimes on the evening.

"I never felt like we got in a great flow tonight," said head coach Chase Teichmann. "Credit to Keiser, they did a good job making it tough on us and they are hard to guard. We have a lot of shot makers and we just made enough shots tonight to win. The crowd was tremendous. Our run at the beginning of the second half, stringing together stops, is what earned us the win."

(On the play of DJ Doakes)

"DJ was huge for us tonight," said Teichmann. "He made key shots for us in critical situations. I can think of a handful of charges he took for the team, had a nice steal and fastbreak dunk. He is having his best collegiate season and it all starts with how great of an attitude he has. He is fully bought-in to what we're doing and asking of him. He is the best communicator on our team. We are proud of him and lucky to be able to coach him."

The RV Falcons move to 24-3 on the season, building on the school record for wins in a season. They've won six games in a row. Up next, they'll take on Carver College (Ga.) in a late-season added game. Originally the Falcons were scheduled to play Middle Georgia State University, but they canceled on FC due to Covid. The Falcons will now take on Carver at a neutral site, on Brewton-Parker's campus in Mount Vernon, Georgia at 6:30 PM (ET) on Tuesday night, February 15.