GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Central Conference champions No. 8 Daytona State College were one possession better than Santa Fe College men's basketball on Saturday, as the Falcons held off the Saints by a 91-89 score inside the SF Gymnasium.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Saints fell into an 11-2 hole but stormed all the way back to claim their first lead of the game at 21-20 following a three-pointer from Nasir Mann with 12:36 on the clock. Mann's three was sandwiched between two from Cole Deptula as part of an 11-0 SF run, bringing the score to 26-20.

The lead would change hands back to the Falcons in a blink, and DSC opened up a 45-39 advantage with a 10-2 run approaching the halftime whistle.

Jalen Speer's two free-throws represented the half's final points, and SF trailed by just four, 45-41, at the break.

In the second half, the game was tied for the fifth time at 66-66 when Daytona State went on a game-changing 14-2 to seize an 80-68 lead with 8:08 on the clock. All 14 points came from Josue Grullon (9) and Jacob Crews (5).

The Saints weren't done yet though and climbed all the way back to within a single point, 83-82, with 4:50 on the clock on the strength of a 14-3 run of their own. Five baskets came from inside the paint, as SF relentlessly made its way to the basket.

The teams proceeded to trade offensive blows, with neither team being able to get many stops defensively.

It was just a two-point game, 91-89, after a Kordell Brown free-throw with 54 seconds left.

After empty possessions for each side, two Daytona State missed free-throws with three seconds left opened the door for a Santa Fe game-winner.

Coach Mowry called a timeout once the defensive rebound was secured, and drew up a play that got Jalen Speer moving with momentum into a contested three-point attempt at the buzzer, but it came off the rim strong as the Falcons secured their third win over SF this season.

KEY STATISTICS

Daytona State outrebounded Santa Fe, 44-39.

The Saints shot over 50 percent from the field and hit ten three-pointers, but Daytona State made up for a 40 percent shooting night by converting on 14 attempts from beyond the arc.

SF had 44 points in the paint compared to 26 for Daytona State…

The Falcons were 15-of-20 from the free-throw line, while SF was 13-of-20.

Crews and Speer were the game-high scorers with 25 points each.

For SF, Speer contributed eight rebounds and six assists to go along with his 25 points, and he went 4-of-10 from three-point territory.

Mann went for an efficient 24 points, just one off his career high. He has contributed 20 or more points in four of his last five games…

Brown finished with 19 points and five rebounds, while Nikolaos Noumeros had 13 points, six rebounds, and a game-high six assists.

UP NEXT

The Saints (16-12, 8-6 Central) will host Polk State College (10-18, 5-9 Central) in the final game of the regular season on Tuesday, Feb. 28. Tipoff time is 6:00 p.m. inside the SF Gymnasium.

SF has already secured third place in the Central Conference and will be in consideration for an at-large bid to the Region 8 Tournament, but one more win against the Eagles will only bolster its resume…

The full bracket will be announced on March 2, and the tournament will take place on March 9– March 11 in Niceville, Fla. at Northwest Florida State College.