#TCCBasketball: Eagle men hold on to win season opener

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (November 1, 2016) – NJCAA No. 19/Region 8 No. 4 Tallahassee Community College overcame a cold shooting night to hold off Faith (Ga.) Baptist Christian Academy, 69-59, in the 2016-17 season opener for both teams. 

With the win, Tallahassee also remained perfect at home under Mark White, who is now 13-0 in the Bill Hebrock Eagledome as the Eagles' head coach. 

The Eagles shot just 29.2 percent (21-of-72) for the game, including 2-of-17 from beyond the arc, but limited the Crusaders to only 30.0 percent (21-of-70) shooting and won the rebounding battle 60-51. 

Tallahassee dominated the offensive glass, turning 27 offensive rebounds into a 26-9 advantage in second chance points. 

Still, the game was up for grabs with five minutes left and Tallahassee clinging to a 61-56 lead. 

After Faith Baptist scored to cut the Eagles' lead to three, Tre Todd knocked down, arguably, the biggest shot of the game – a three-pointer, to push Tallahassee's lead back to six, 64-58, with 4:43 left that started an 8-1 run to end the game. 

Todd added a pair of free throws at the 2:07 mark and finished with a team-high 11 points. 

Sophomore center Deion Bute and freshman guard Ronald Bell recorded double-doubles for Tallahassee. 

Bute scored 10 points and grabbed a team-high 16 rebounds while Bell added 10 points and 10 boards. 

Tallahassee (1-0) will return to action this weekend when it hosts the Seals Financial Tip-Off Classic. The Eagles play Atlanta Metro State College at 7:30 p.m. Friday and South Georgia Technical College at 2 p.m. Saturday.