WINTER HAVEN – For about 28 minutes on Wednesday night, Polk State Basketball stood toe-to-toe with No. 22 Florida SouthWestern State College. A big run in the second half, however, gave the Buccaneers the breathing room they needed to leave with a 73-57 victory.

Florida SouthWestern State started strong, racing to a 15-2 lead. The Buccaneers led by as many as 15 points in the first half, but the latter parts of the opening session belonged to the Eagles.

Dominick Nelson and Cole White each scored six points in the first half. TrayVon Osborne's tip-in just before the buzzer cut the lead to 35-28 at the break.

Wearing the road black for the program's annual Blackout Game, the Eagles (9-8, 1-3 Citrus Conference) used an energized crowd to their advantage early in the second half. Polk State got as close as four on two occasions before a disastrous stretch put the game on ice. The Buccaneers used a 19-0 run to turn the game into a rout.

During the run, Polk State was assessed with both a flagrant and a technical foul. The Eagles went more than six minutes without a point during the stretch and more than eight minutes without a field goal.

Derrick Jones Jr.'s fast-break slam with less than five minutes to go served as Polk's first basket since before the 13-minute mark. Prior to that, four free throws by Nelson had accounted for the only points over the eight-minute drought. As a team, the Eagles shot just 27% from the field.

Nelson and Jones each finished with 12 points to pace Polk State. Malachi Stevens scored all 11 of his points in the second half in the losing effort.

Jaeshon Thomas, Reis Jones, and Cole Franklin each finished with 14 points for Florida SouthWestern State. Thomas was a perfect 5-for-5 from the field while Jones was the game's top rebounder with 12.

Since opening Citrus play with a victory over Miami Dade College, Polk State has dropped three straight games – all by double digits. The Eagles will try to right the ship on Saturday when they travel to Gainesville to take on Santa Fe College. Tip time is scheduled for 4 p.m.