Faulkner Outlasts William Carey
Faulkner battled back from a 12-point first half deficit and sprinted away from William Carey 79-65 in college basketball action Saturday night at Tine Davis Gymnasium.
A large homecoming crowd didn't have much to cheer early as the Crusaders built a 14-2 lead in the opening four minutes. Still trailing by 12 at 27-15 with 9:02 in the half, Faulkner got four points apiece from Richarde McCray and Bryant Murray during a 13-0 run that resulted in its first lead of the night. The two teams traded blows the rest of the half, with William Carey taking a 35-32 advantage to intermission.
The second half, however, was all Faulkner's. A McCray basket gave the 23rd-ranked Eagles the lead for good at 40-38 with 16:09 to play. A 10-0 run, culminated with a Jon Uriarte basket, pushed the lead to 12 with 10:17 left and the Crusaders never really threatened again. Faulkner made 10 of 12 free throws in the final minutes to keep William Carey at bay.
"We didn't seem to be ready to play early, but in the second half we defended better and looked sharp at times offensively,'' Faulkner head coach Jim Sanderson said. "I thought our guys really picked up the intensity in the second half.''
McCray led five Faulkner players in double figures with 19 points. Uriarte and Jammie Evans added 13 apiece, while Murray and Raul Cardenas each has 11. The Eagles (3-0) held their third straight opponent to under 40 percent shooting from the field. William Carey finished at 37 percent.
Dexter Cheairs had 20 points and Jarekus Singleton 15 for the Crusaders (1-1).
Faulkner opens Southern States Athletic Conference play Thursday night, hosting Brewton-Parker at 7 p.m.