LAKELAND, Fla. – In a game that featured double-digit leads by both teams, No. 17 University of Saint Francis (Ind.) upset No. 13 Warner University 97-86 on Friday night at the Sportsplex on the campus of Southeastern University.  The neutral site loss is just the second of the year for the Royals and drops their record to 6-2.  The win improves the Cougars' record to 9-3 on the year.

The see-saw battle got off to a lopsided start as the Cougars came out with the hot hand and ran out to a 19-4 lead forcing two early timeouts by the Royals.  Warren Hall, the NCCAA National Player of the Week, got off to a hot start though scoring 11 of Warner's first 13 points.

At the second media timeout of the half the Royals had cut the Cougars lead to 25-17.  A quick 5-2 run by the Royals narrowed the deficit to 27-22 with Hall accounting for 16 points.  Josh Ellis brought the Royals all the way back from a 15-point deficit tying the game with a pair of free throws at the 4:51 mark.  Less than 10 seconds later Ellis forced a turnover made a layup in the paint to put the Royals on top for the first time 37-35.

After starting 0-for-5 from the field, the Royals finished the half shooting 14-for-21 and led 47-45 at halftime.  Hall led all scorers with 19 points.  Eddie Delegal also had 12 points for the Royals.  The Cougars shot 66.7% from the field in the first half and made six shots from behind the arc.

The back and forth battled intensified in the second half as the two sides exchanged the lead on the first two possessions of the half.  The Cougars continued to shoot the ball well in the second half to the tune of 60.7% from the field forcing back to back Warner timeouts with 11:52 to go. 

The Cougars' lead ballooned to 10 points, 72-62, with 9:01 to go as the Royals called another timeout to try and regroup.  There was little they could do, however, as the Cougars lead grew to 15, 84-69, over the next five minutes.

In the end, the Royals could not keep up as six Saint Francis players scored in double digits en route to a 97-86 victory.  The Cougars made 11 three-pointers in the game and were 63.5% shooters from the field.

Hall's big night ended with 33 points on 10-of-19 shooting.  He was also a perfect 10-for-10 from the free throw line and had seven assists as well.  Delegal added 21 points giving the duo 54 of Warner's 86 points.  Josh Ellis also reached double-digits with 10 in the game.

The Royals were outrebounded in the game 33-22 by the Cougars.  Hall led the way with six boards for the home team.

The Royals take to the road next week for a pair of games in the Chuck Daly Classic hosted by Keiser University in West Palm Beach, Fla.  The Royals first tournament game comes on Wednesday, Dec. 16, against No. 7 Bethel College (Ind.) at 5 p.m.  Then on Thursday, Dec. 17, the Royals get a rematch with Edward Waters College at 5 p.m.  


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