Anytime two top-10 teams meet early in the season, the expectation is a high-level showdown. Friday night delivered exactly that—and more—as No. 6 Northwest Florida battled past No. 3 Daytona State for a thrilling 101–99 overtime road victory.
The game swung wildly in both directions, with each team building—and losing—double-digit leads. Daytona State surged ahead by 10 midway through the first half, but the Raiders closed the gap and trailed by just three at halftime. Northwest Florida answered with an 11-point lead of its own in the second frame, only to see the Falcons erase it in the closing seconds to force overtime.
Despite the momentum shift, the Raiders kept their poise and finished the job, securing their first ranked win of the season to improve to 5–0.
Three Raiders shined brightest: Damarion Vann-Kelly poured in a season-high 24 points, knocking down 5-of-11 from three. Braylon Roman added a season-high 23 points, seven assists, and three made threes. DJ Shine shook off a cold first half to finish with 21 points, including 18 in the second half, plus seven rebounds and five threes.
The trio combined for 68 points, accounting for 67.3% of the Raiders’ scoring.
Northwest Florida also got strong contributions from its supporting cast. Justin Burns continued to dominate the glass with eight rebounds and 11 points, while Jonas Nichols delivered 11 points and five boards. Christian Reid added a season-high nine rebounds, giving the Raiders important interior toughness.
Northwest Florida shot the ball exceptionally well, finishing 48.1% from the field (38–79) and an elite 58.3% from three (14–24). Daytona countered with 51.4% shooting (38–74) but struggled from deep at 27.6% (8–29). Rebounding was nearly even, with the Raiders holding a slight 42–38 edge, while turnovers were identical at 16 apiece.
FIRST HALF
Northwest Florida struck first as Braylon Roman buried an early three. After a Daytona bucket, Damarion Vann-Kelly knocked down a mid-range jumper to give the Raiders a 5–3 edge. The Falcons briefly regained the lead, but DJ Shine answered with another Raider three to make it 8–6. Tied at 10, Daytona broke loose with a 7–0 run to go up 17–10.
That run sparked an explosive stretch where the teams combined for seven straight made threes—eight made threes in nine total possessions, four per side. The barrage helped the Raiders stay within striking distance, trailing by just six with eight minutes left in the half.
Daytona shifted the momentum back inside with consecutive makes at the rim, building a 10-point lead. Northwest Florida responded with a 10–2 run to tighten the score to 34–32 with just over four minutes remaining. Vann-Kelly hit another three to trim it to one, but the Falcons answered with back-to-back buckets. His next three-pointer made it 42–40, though Daytona countered with a three of their own. Roman closed the half with a smooth mid-range jumper, sending the Raiders into the break down just 45–42.
SECOND HALF
Vann-Kelly picked up right where he left off, drilling a three to open the half and tie the game at 45. For the next nine minutes, the teams traded baskets until DJ Shine finally created separation with back-to-back threes, putting Northwest Florida ahead 64–60. Shine stayed red-hot, hitting two more threes—four straight—to extend the lead to 70–64.
Roman and Justin Burns then added consecutive mid-range jumpers, and a Shine free throw pushed the Raiders’ lead to 75–64, their largest of the night, with 8:23 remaining.
It looked like Northwest Florida was poised to put the game away, but Daytona mounted a gutsy rally. A three-shot foul with 4:46 left gave the Falcons three free points, sparking their comeback. Two more free throws and a three trimmed the lead to seven with 3:33 to play. After a timeout, Daytona executed a perfectly drawn-up play for an uncontested dunk, then added a jumper to pull within 87–82.
Shine scored with 1:35 left, but Daytona answered with another three, cutting the margin to four. The Falcons kept coming, scoring again inside the final minute to make it 89–87. Shine split a pair at the line, but Daytona responded with a make inside 20 seconds remaining. They then forced a turnover on the inbound, drew a foul, and split the free throws to tie the game at 90–90.
Justin Burns earned a one-and-one chance with seconds remaining, but the free throw rimmed out as the clock expired, sending the game to overtime.
OVERTIME
Vann-Kelly wasted no time reclaiming momentum, scoring on a pull-up two and then hitting a three to put the Raiders ahead 95–91. Daytona answered with a dunk, but Vann-Kelly drew a foul on a three-point attempt and calmly sank all three to extend the lead back to five.
The Falcons climbed within one after a bucket and two free throws, but Shine delivered a huge putback layup to push the Raiders to 100 points. Daytona responded with a mid-range jumper, then fouled Burns with 19 seconds left. Burns hit one of two, giving Northwest Florida a two-point cushion.
From there, the Raider defense closed the door, holding Daytona scoreless in the final seconds to secure the hard-fought victory.
UP NEXT
The Raiders are back in Daytona tomorrow afternoon as they get set to face another Region VIII foe in Hillsborough. Tip-off is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. (CST). The game can be live streamed by visiting the Daytona State Athletics website.
