DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Despite a career-high 35 points from Dillon Graham, the Embry-Riddle men's basketball team couldn't overcome a 15-point halftime deficit, falling to Florida Tech 102-97. The Eagles fall to 15-9 with the loss, while the Panthers move to 13-12.
 
Graham posted his 35 points on 11-of-15 shooting, including 7-of-9 from behind the arc and 6-of-6 from the charity stripe. Shaquan McArthur added 21 points while Dalton Barnes posted 12 points, a game-high eight assists and six rebounds. Skyler Hogan pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds to go along with nine points.
 
The Eagles got off to an early lead, with Luka Majstorovic scoring a layup to put ERAU ahead 10-6 less than three minutes into the game. The lead would be short-lived, as FIT went on an 8-0 run to move ahead 14-10. The two sides remained close for much of the first half, but Florida Tech closed out the period strong and went into the locker room with a 51-36 advantage.
 
The Panthers maintained a comfortable lead throughout a majority of the second half. FIT extended its lead to a game-high 18 points (56-38) less than a minute into the period, and still held a comfortable 77-64 advantage at the midway point of the half. A Hogan triple brought ERAU to within single digits (84-75) with 6:07 to go and a three-point play from Graham cut it to six (84-78) with 5:31 on the clock. The Panthers responded, scoring the next six consecutive points to regain a 12-point cushion (90-78) with 3:33 left in the game. The Blue and Gold didn't roll over, mounting a furious comeback in the final minute. ERAU went on a 14-5 run in the final 60 seconds, with a three from Graham cutting the deficit to just four points (101-97) at the 11-second mark. That was the closest the Eagles would get, with FIT holding on for the 102-97 win.
 
The Blue and Gold are back in action on Wednesday, Feb. 22 for the final road contest of the season at Palm Beach Atlantic. Tip-off is slated for 7:30 p.m.