CF Patriots 70, Daytona State 68 (MBB)

Central Florida clinched the men's basketball Mid-Florida Conference title Saturday night with a 70-68 win over Daytona State in front of a packed crowd of homecoming revelers.

Kevin Foster scored 20 points, including two game-sealing free throws in the final seconds, and added 10 rebounds to pace the Patriots. Slobodan Miljanic, the lone returning sophomore, added 19 points and 8 rebounds, scoring 14 of his points in the second half. And 4 of point guard Hunter Williams' 6 points came on a pair of layups in the final two minutes that kept the rallying Falcons at bay.

With the victory, CF (22-6, 8-2) will finish no worse than 8-4, while second-place St. Johns River can finish no better than 8-4. Should the teams finish tied, the Patriots would claim the tiebreaker with the head-to-head advantage in their season series against SJR.

By winning the conference, the Patriots avoid the dangerous conference tournament, which pits the second, third and fourth-place teams in a single-elimination playoff to determine the conference's second state tournament representative. As the MFC champion, CF will face the runner-up of the Southern Conference in the quarterfinal round of the FCCAA/NJCAA Region VIII Tournament on Thursday, March 3 at Marianna. Game times have not yet been announced.

Though they've now been rendered academic, the Patriots have two regular-season games remaining. They visit St. Johns River on Wednesday, then host FSC-Jacksonville on Saturday, Feb. 19.

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