Photograph by Gary McCullough
Following a tough first quarter, the Jacksonville Giants maintained their composure in their weekend series finale game with the Daytona Beach Sharks. Trailing 25-22 in the first quarter, the Giants outscored Daytona Beach 35-12 in the second quarter catapulting them to a 130-79 win. Jacksonville had five players score in double figures. Jacksonville outscored Daytona Beach 264-184 in the weekend series.
The Sharks jumped out to an early lead with strong play from team leading scorer Pat Hendley, who finished the game with a Sharks team-high 13 points. Hendley and Eric Ruffin made key jump shots to give Daytona Beach a three-point first quarter lead.
The Giants began their offensive flurry early in the second quarter and did not look back. Jacksonville outscored Daytona Beach by a combined 71-28 spanning from the second quarter to the conclusion of the third quarter. Both Bernard Nugent and Keith McDougald led the Giants with 19 points each.
Other offensive standouts were Clarence Tillman (17 points), Robert Hornsby (17 points), and Aaron Bowen (16 points). Hornsby led the Giants with 35 total points in the weekend series. Bowen and Tillman both had 11 rebounds each which gave them double-doubles for the game.
Jacksonville returns home at Edward Waters College on Saturday, January 21 with a showdown against the Columbus Blackhawks. Tipoff vs the Blackhawks is slated for 7:00 pm.