MIAMI, Fla. – After a weekend of near-misses at home, the Carolina University men's basketball team traded snow-covered Winston-Salem for sunny South Florida and delivered a strong response, sweeping a Continental Athletic Conference (CAC) pod with wins over Florida National and the University of Fort Lauderdale.
Carolina opened the trip Friday afternoon with a 70–65 victory over Florida National. The Bruins trailed by two at halftime but erupted for 48 second-half points, shooting over 50 percent after the break to pull away late. DJ Evans led the charge with 20 points, while Shawn Woodson added 15 off the bench. Deuce Ford stuffed the stat sheet with 11 points and eight assists as Carolina controlled the paint and the tempo down the stretch.
Less than 24 hours later, the Bruins followed it up with an 84–81 overtime win against Fort Lauderdale in a back-and-forth battle that featured 10 lead changes and 10 ties. Carolina leaned on balanced scoring and composure in overtime, outscoring Fort Lauderdale 13–10 in the extra period. Evans once again paced the Bruins with 18 points, while Woodson (14), Cooper Smith (13), and Ford (12) all finished in double figures. Enock Rosil anchored the interior with 10 points and 12 rebounds as Carolina finished the pod 2–0.
Head Coach Jake Heck praised his team's resilience after a challenging stretch.
"We've been right there the last few weeks, and this group never stopped believing," Heck said. "I was proud of how we responded in Miami. We defended, shared the ball, and trusted each other in big moments."
With the sweep, Carolina heads back to Winston-Salem carrying momentum and confidence after proving it can close games against CAC competition on the road.
