But after some work this week in practice, GHHS shot 73 percent from the line Tuesday night and went 6-for-8 down the stretch as the Falcons held off a furious Athens Drive comeback to take a 50-48 win over the Jaguars.

"We just worked on them in practice [Monday] and shot 15 each, practicing the same routine every time," said Green Hope's Chris Flemmings, who along with Max Povse and Joshua Holloman, led the Falcons with 10 points.

It seemed to pay off, as the Falcons would need about every one of the six free throws they sank in the final minute.

Athens had rallied back from a deficit as large as 17 in the second half, slicing the Falcons lead down to single digits.

The Jaguars got as close as one point twice during the final two minutes, but the Jaguars simply couldn't overcome Green Hope's lead.

"We've been resilient the last few games that have been close. I give the kids credit, they hung tough. They made some mistakes, which is our inexperience showing through, but they keep battling out there," Bissette said. "They gave us a great effort down the stretch in terms of trying to make things positive happen."

The Falcons grabbed the lead for good when they went up 16-14 with just over six minutes left in the first half, prompting a 20-3 run that put the Jaguars in a deep hole.

Athens trailed 34-17 less than two minutes into the second half, but the Jaguars were far from done.

Rahim Jenkins' bucket sparked a 19-4 Athens run, as Green Hope was held to six points in the third quarter.

The Jaguars continued whittling away at the Falcons' lead, eventually cutting it to 44-43 with 1:42 remaining.

But that's as far as Athens would get.

"I'm proud of them, they showed some energy. We didn't play with a whole lot urgency in that first half," said Athens coach Robert Clemons. "That first half was just a lack of playing with urgency, but I told them I'm proud of them. They came back in the second half and played hard."

The Jaguars' Mike King — who led all scorers with 19 points, followed by Athens' Hurley Cannady with 15 — hit his fifth 3-pointer of the night with seven seconds left to slice the margin down to 49-48 Falcons.

After making the bucket, Athens fouled Povse, who knocked down one of two free throws with 0.6 remaining on the clock to put GHHS up 50-48.

The Jags had one last gasp, but Athens' back-court heave fell short.

"We still allowed them to get some second chances. There was some loose balls that we should have gotten. We reached and they got lower to get the ball," Clemons said. "When you give people second chances, you get burned."