MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Carver College turned a nine-point halftime deficit into a 10-point lead with five minutes to play, then held off a furious Faulkner rally down the stretch to escape with an 89-87 victory here Monday night in a non-conference battle at Tine Davis Gymnasium.

The Cougars (6-11) started the second half on a 22-6 run to take command, and seemed safe with an 80-70 lead with 3:35 to play. Scott Sanderson's Eagles (3-5) refused to wilt, however, riding Nick Drake's penetrating baskets and a 3-pointer from Logan Jozwiak with 29 seconds left to trim it to 87-84. After a Cougar turnover, Drake's 3-pointer to tie it bounded off the rim. Carver's Jamil Saaka made a free throw to push the lead back to four with 16 seconds on the clock, but Faulkner's Marquis Grays hit a 3-pointer from deep in the corner with just under two seconds showing. Troy Swanson's free throw with 1.2 seconds left made it 89-87, and the Eagles failed to get a final shot up in time.

"The key was the start of the second half," Sanderson said. "We started the game well, jumping out to an early lead, but we didn't have the same start in the first five minutes of the second half. The shooting percentages in the second half tell the story. We couldn't guard them, and we weren't knocking down shots until the last few minutes. We had every opportunity to win this game, but we just didn't do the things we needed to do to get it done."

In the second half, the Cougars shot 64 percent from the field to the Eagles' 36 percent, which allowed the visitors to flip the fortunes. The setback overshadowed a pair of excellent performances by Faulkner's Drake and Lucas Lutrell. Drake finished with 24 points and six assists while Lutrell had a career night – scoring 22 points and pulling down a game-high 16 rebounds. Monta Sanford added 13 points and nine rebounds, while Jozwiak added 11 points and Alex Anderson 10. The Cougars were paced by Brannon Hopkins' 21 points, with Saaka and Sayevon Edwards chipping in 17 apiece.

"We're basically playing with five guards and continue to not get much out of the post," Sanderson added. "I thought in the first half we were a bit more aggressive, and I think we lost some of that in the second."

Luttrell's energy was contagious as the Eagles played perhaps its best half of the season on the offensive end. Faulkner shot 47 percent from the field, and made seven 3-pointers in the opening 20 minutes. The Eagles built a 16-7 early advantage and stayed in control for most of the period. A Sanford driving basket put the Eagles up 40-32, and Drake's two free throws gave Sanderson's team a double-digit lead a few seconds later. The Eagles led 44-35 at the break.

Faulkner hosts Point (Ga.) Saturday afternoon at 2 in another non-conference matchup.