MONTGOMERY, Ala. - William Carey took control early and never trailed, overpowering Faulkner on the way to a 69-60 victory here Saturday afternoon in a Southern States Athletic Conference showdown at Tine Davis Gymnasium.

The Crusaders (9-8 overall, 4-2 SSAC) built a quick double-digit lead and held it well into the second half before the Eagles made a run. With Di'mar Hill converting four straight possessions into baskets at the rim, Faulkner climbed to within 42-38 with 14:20 left in the game. Troy Salvant answered with back-to-back 3-pointers for William Carey, igniting a run that resulted in the biggest lead of the game at 63-48 at the 7:20 mark. The Eagles (7-11 overall, 1-5 SSAC) scored the next eight points to pull to within seven, but could get no closer the rest of the way.

"They set the tone early and we didn't match their energy," Faulkner head coach Scott Sanderson said. "We turned it over way too much early which lead to easy baskets. When we did get back in the game, they hit some big shots and we just couldn't keep them off the offensive glass. We knew that would be an issue in the game, just as it is in most all of our games. We're undersized, but we have to find away to neutralize the backboards."

Hill finished with 33 points and was joined by only one teammate in double figures - Nick Drake, who had 11. Cory Jackson's 21 points was tops for William Carey, with Donta Pittman adding 17 and Salvant 11. The Crusaders grabbed 41 rebounds to the Eagles' 32, and their 15 offensive boards led to 17 second-chance points. Faulkner had only two second-chance points on five offensive rebounds. Logan Jozwiak had eight boards to lead the Eagles,while Leo Garrett pulled down a game-high 10 for William Carey. Faulkner actually outshot William Carey, making 44 percent of its attempts to just 42 percent for the visitors. The Crusaders, however, had 17 more shots at the basket than did the Eagles.

William Carey came out on fire, making six of its first seven shots to build a 15-4 lead. Faulkner hung tough from there, but could never put much of a dent in the Crusader advantage. The margin grew to as many as 14 in the first half and, after the initial surge, the closest the Eagles could get the rest of the period was seven points. William Carey's 39-28 advantage at the break was aided by two facts - it outshot Faulkner 46 percent to 40 percent and it out rebounded the Eagles 19-15. Faulkner didn't help its cause, committing 11 first-half turnovers while forcing just six. For the game, the Eagles had 16 miscues to 14 for the Crusaders.

Faulkner is back home again next Saturday when it welcomes Loyola (La.) to Tine Davis Gymnasium. The game tips off at 4 p.m.