FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. – Guard Anthony Gaskins (Jr./Greenville, NC) scored 24 points and pulled down nine rebounds for Saint Augustine's University, but a late lead slipped away from the Falcons in a 61-57 CIAA men's basketball loss to Fayetteville State University at Capel Arena on Saturday, Feb. 20, 2016.

The Falcons ended the regular season second in the Southern Division at 6-4. They came into the contest with a chance to either tie for first place or win the division.

 
The Falcons will enter the CIAA Tournament next week as the Southern Division No. 2 seed. They will face either Bowie State University or Chowan University on Thursday, Feb. 25.

Forward Quincy January (So./Atlanta, GA) of the Falcons added 11 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks for his CIAA-leading 15th double-double of the season. He ranked seventh nationally in Division II in double-doubles before Saturday's contest.

The Falcons (11-15 overall) trailed most of the game, but January scored on a tip-in with 3:02 remaining for a 55-48 lead. But the Falcons couldn't hold on as they were outscored 13-2 down the stretch.

The Falcons' final lead was 57-56 with 40 seconds left on a follow shot by January, but ?Joshua Dawson drained a contested three-pointer at the top of the arc wiith 18 seconds left to put the Broncos in front 59-57 with 18 seconds remaining. A length of the court drive by the Falcons resulted in a turnover with nine ticks remaining, and the Broncos (4-6 Southern Division, 12-14 overall) swished two free throws for the final margin.

The game's start was a bad omen for the Falcons as they quickly fell behind 8-0. They battled uphill most of the game – trailing by as many as eight in the second half - before taking their first lead at 46-45 on Gaskins' layup with 7:02 remaining. His basket started a 9-3 run capped by January's follow shot before the Broncos rallied to victory on their Senior Day.

The Falcons nearly came away with the win despite poor free throw shooting. They made only 8 of 23 free throw attempts for 34.8 percent. By contrast, the Broncos were 20 of 29 for 69 percent.

The points at the free throw line were the difference in the low scoring affair. Neither team could find the mark in the first half as the Broncos led 25-22. For the contest, the Falcons shot 39.2 percent from the floor and the Broncos connected on 40.9 percent of their attempts.

The Falcons were hot behind the three-point arc, however, making 9 of 16 shots for 56.3 percent. Gaskins was 5 of 9 and guard Keith Crawford (Sr./Richmond, VA), who added 13 points, was 3 of 5. Their three-point shooting kept the Falcons in contention throughout the contest. .

Michael Tyson led the Broncos with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Dawson scored all nine of his points in the final 1:38 to seal the win.

Despite the defeat, the Falcons finished the regular season with a flourish, winning six of their last eight games. Picked to finish fourth in the division, the Falcons exceeded expectations. They plan on turning more heads in the CIAA Tournament.