HATTIESBURG, Miss. - Faulkner saw a narrow first half lead slip away after a rough cold stretch in the second half saw William Carey pull away as the Eagles fell 90-79 Thursday night in SSAC action.

Jayden Cooper's layup at 17:58 left in the game would be the last field goal the Eagles would get for almost 5:30 until Jerome Thomas broke the streak from open play that saw just four free throws hit during that time. Garcia knocked down a triple about 90 seconds later to cut the deficit to just five despite the cold shooting as the defense held them in the game for the moment. 

However, the Crusaders went on an 11-2 run over the next two minutes to pull away. With time winding down in the game, Sean McCurdy and Cooper each knocked down long balls to cut into the 84-78 Crusader lead, but could not get any closer.

After his team-best 21 point performance in another no-substitution game, Jonathan Garcia has played every minute of the last five games spanning 205 minutes. Cooper had 18 points and five assists. McCurdy had 17 points and seven boards. Victor Muñoz scored 13 and added five assists. 

The Eagles sit in ninth, a half game above 10th (Brewton-Parker) and a full game ahead of 11th (Middle Georgia) for the 10-team SSAC Men's Basketball Championship field. 

Faulkner welcomes Blue Mountain Saturday at 2:00 for an important matchup with the Toppers who are currently 12th.  Read Full Article