GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Santa Fe College men's basketball was just a step ahead of visiting Polk State on Wednesday evening, as the Saints outlasted the Eagles in a tightly contested, 82-77 matchup.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Eagles led for the vast majority of the opening half. Leading 23-18 with 9:21 on the clock, Polk State rattled off six unanswered points to seize its largest advantage of the game, 29-18.

The Saints had a response, however, and grabbed a halftime lead with a 17-4 run over the final five minutes of the opening half.

SF led 43-37 at the break. Kordell Brown had 11 points, including a hook from inside the paint to beat the buzzer, and Cole Deptula had ten points on 3-of-5 shooting from three-point territory.

Santa Fe began the half well and opened up a nine-point lead, 55-46 on a Nikolaos Noumeros triple with 12:54 on the clock.

The second half would however feature five ties and two lead changes. The Eagles took a lead at 62-59 on a George Pridgett three-pointer with 8:16 left, but Nigel Martin tied it up with a three-pointer of his own.

Minutes later, Brown's dunk in transition reversed the lead back to SF, 67-66, and it proved to be a part of a 7-0 SF run that gave the Saints a 71-66 lead with 4:25 remaining. Six of the seven points came from Brown during the stretch.

Every time Polk State tried to get close the rest of the way, SF had an answer. The Eagles got to within two points, 79-77 with a corner three-pointer with 18 seconds left, but then had to play the foul game.

Martin sunk two from the stripe for the Saints, Polk State came up empty on the ensuing possession, and Deptula's free-throw with seven seconds left accounted for the game's final tally as SF held off Polk State in the season's first of three Central Conference meetings between the teams.

UPDATED RECORDS

Santa Fe – 11-7, 3-1 Central

Polk State – 6-12, 1-3 Central

KEY STATISTICS

The statistics were fairly similar across the board in this one, but SF held a huge advantage from the free-throw line. The Saints went 25-of-31, while Polk converted on just 8-of-18.

Pridgett led Polk with a game-high 26 points, which includes six triples.

Five scored double-digits for SF, led by 20 from Brown. Martin matched a season-high with 18 points, going 11-of-13 from the charity stripe. Deptula and Nasir Mann each had 11, while Jalen Speer finished with ten points and game-highs in rebounds (nine) and assists (six).

UP NEXT

The Saints (11-7, 3-1 Central) head to No. 21 Daytona State College (16-3, 3-1 Central) on Saturday, Jan. 21. The Saints and Falcons will tip off at 4:00 p.m.