In a contest that saw 11 ties and five lead changes, Pfeiffer took the lead for good with 31 seconds left, including a free throw with six seconds remaining, and an Abbey last second shot fell short as the Falcons escaped with a 91-89 win over the Crusaders this evening at the Wheeler Center. Pfeiffer improves to 9-4 overall and 5-2 in Conference Carolinas, while the Abbey, which had its four game winning streak snapped, falls to 8-7 overall and 7-2 in Conference Carolinas.

Crusaders freshman guard Richard Barbee led all scorers with a career-high 29 points, shooting 9-14 from the floor, including a 2-3 effort from three-point range, and sinking nine of ten free throw attempts. He narrowly missed recording a double double as he pulled down nine rebounds, dished out three assists, collected three steals and blocked a shot in 37 minutes. Junior guard Jonathan Jackson added 17 points, while Arturs Papans and Ric Marczenko both finished with 10 points as the Crusaders shot 49.2 percent (31-63) from the floor. Point guard Deonte Murphy led all players with eight assists.

Pfeiffer was led by Thomas Carr's 21 points, while Logan Call and Quintel Maxwell both added 11 as the Falcons finished the evening with a 52.3 percent (34-65) effort from the floor.

The Abbey is back in action Monday afternoon at 4:00 when it goes on the road to face Mount Olive.