Saint Augustine’s College, the CIAA’s highest scoring team, proved Saturday it can win a lowscoring basketball game as well. As a result, the Falcons’ men (14-3 overall, 8-2 CIAA, 5-1 Western Division) lead the CIAA Western Division and captured their eighth straight victory. Behind 23 points from CIAA scoring leader Antonio Fitzgerald, the Falcons pulled away in the final minutes for a 63-53 victory at McLendon-McDougald Gym on the Eagles’ campus. The Falcons won the first meeting 92-71 Jan. 14 at Broughton High School so the Eagles tried to slow the tempo in the rematch. Though held well below their scoring average, the Falcons were still victorious because of good defense and the scoring of Fitzgerald and Nicholas King (17 points), the CIAA’s No. 2 scorer.

The score was tied 44-44 with 12:27 remaining in the contest but and stayed that way four minutes later with both teams playing great defense. But Fitzgerald, fouled on a three-point attempt, made all three foul shots at the 8:40 mark to spark a 19-9 run that sealed the win. Fitzgerald literally took over down the stretch, scoring 13 points during the Falcons’ run including 7 straight points to start the spurt. Meanwhile, the Eagles (5-11, 3-3, 2-2) struggled to score over the long arms of the Falcons’ players.

The final minutes were indicative of how the Falcons defended. The Eagles shot 31 percent from the floor while the Falcons shot 46 percent. The Eagles also misfired from the free-throw line, shooting 19 of 33 while the Falcons were 13 of 19.

Junior guard Claude Neeley, the CIAA’s No. 3 scorer, added 8 points, the first time he failed to reach double figures this season. He led the Falcons with 9 rebounds, however, to maintain his average as the CIAA’s leading rebounder.

Sophomore forward Deon Dixon added 6 points and freshman guard Derrick Green scored 4 points and added 4 assists off the bench for the Falcons. Julius McClellan and Charles Futrell both scored 11 points for the Eagles.

The Falcons hit the road twice this week. They face Virginia State Jan. 31 but the matchup observers are pointing to is the Feb. 4 contest at Virginia Union, the defending CIAA and Division II champion. Union currently leads the CIAA’s Eastern Division.

The starting time for both contests is 7:30 p.m.