ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The Embry-Riddle men's basketball team fell just short of its comeback attempt on Saturday as Eckerd held off the Eagles, 82-74 in the Blue and Gold's final game of the 2018-19 season. ERAU (13-18, 6-14 SSC) saw the Tritons (19-9, 12-8 SSC) connect on 11 triples in the game and that proved to be the difference, despite a career-high 27 points from senior Alston Jones and yet another double-double from fellow senior Nashad Mackey (19 points, 11 rebounds).

The Tritons raced out to a 9-0 lead and never trailed, going up by as many as 11 in the opening half before the visitors started to make their move. Nashad Mackey's offensive rebound and put back with 13:27 to play in the first sparked a run for the Eagles, and after Elijah Jenkins nailed a triple to make it 20-16 Eckerd at the 7:11 mark, Luka Majstorovic got the Eagles within a possession with a layup a few moments later. 

The two teams played evenly over the next several minutes, with ERAU getting to within one at 32-31 when Jones hit a trey at the 1:27 mark, but Eckerd ended the half on an 8-2 run, including a Marco Behori three-pointer just before the half ended, taking a 40-33 lead into the break.

A pair of Majstorovic free throws with 18 minutes to play in the second brought ERAU within 41-38, but Eckerd methodically began to pull away, going up by as many as a dozen when Marquis Gilbert connected on one of his five three-pointers with 12 minutes on the clock.

The Eagles had one final push in them, sparked by Mackey and Nick Heard as the two combined for nine straight points to make it a 58-55 game with just over eight minutes remaining. Eckerd couldn't seem to shake the Eagles, leading by just three at the 3:36 mark, but the last three minutes of the game turned into a free throw shooting contest as Eckerd went 14-for-16 down the stretch to seal the win.

ERAU shot 38 percent from the floor, but just 6-for-25 from deep, while Eckerd's 11-for-23 effort from long range pushed the Tritons to the victory.

For Jones, Mackey and Joshua Hawkins, they concluded their collegiate careers, highlighted by Mackey's outstanding two-year career with the Eagles. Mackey registered 39 double-doubles in 50 career games in an Eagle uniform, averaging 17.2 points, 12.2 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.1 blocks per game. Mackey's 17.2 ppg rank third all-time in Eagle history, while his 12.2 boards per outing is easily the top mark in 31 seasons of ERAU basketball. Jones' 4.3 assists per game clip is the sixth-best in the Eagle record books.