MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Talladega led wire to wire Saturday night to hand Faulkner a rare Jimmy Faulkner Classic loss with a 98-75 victory. The result is the first loss suffered by the Eagles in the JFC since a 2023 defeat to Keiser, and it marks only the second loss in the event under
Scott Sanderson.
After knocking off SSAC power William Carey Friday night, the Tornadoes lived up to their billing Saturday by making 57.1 percent of their shots from the field on 63 attempts. That offensive output proved too much for the Eagles to match as Faulkner managed just 40.3 percent from the field and 27.3 percent from beyond the arc.
The Tornadoes outscored Faulkner in the paint 40-32 while also taking the rebounding battle 37-34. Dega got a Malik Hinton layup with 8:27 left and followed it with a Treyon Delmore three to ignite a 19-8 run. The stretch lasted 4:22 and ballooned the Tornado lead to 91-71 with only 4:19 to play.
Levi White's layup with 3:23 left snapped an Eagle scoreless streak of nearly three minutes.
Faulkner's best stretch of the second half came on a 9-0 run that started with a
Kamal Green II triple at the 14:22 mark. Green then knocked down a layup before
Jordyn Turner-Durley threw down a dunk. A pair of free throws from White cut the deficit to nine and put the Eagles within shouting distance. Faulkner kept pace with Talladega for the next five minutes before Hinton started the game-defining stretch with his layup.
The teams traded buckets to open the game before Hinton knocked down a three with 16:09 remaining in the first to give the Tornadoes a lead they never relinquished.
Five Tornadoes scored in double figures, led by Keshawn Watkins with 22 points. White paced Faulkner with 14 points, 12 rebounds and three steals. Green finished with 13 points, while Turner-Durley had 13 points and eight rebounds.
Faulkner (1-1) returns to action Tuesday night when it hosts Stillman.
