Savannah, Ga. ? The Armstrong Atlantic State University Men?s Basketball Team (4-4) held on to defeat Lenoir-Rhyne University (2-7), 69-66, Saturday night on the last day of the Hampton Inn & Suites Fall Finals Classic at Alumni Arena.? AASU served as the host institution.

The Pirates? Keron McKenzie (Stone Mountain, Ga.) and Chris Vanlandingham (Hendersonville, N.C.) each scored 19 points to help Armstrong Atlantic State pull out the win.

Junior forward D.J. Blackmon (Albemarle, N.C.) led all scorers with 24 points to go along with 13 rebounds for his second double-double of the year for the Bears, who suffered their third straight defeat.

After AASU took a 52-33 lead with 17:57 left in the game on a three-pointer by McKenzie, Lenoir-Rhyne responded with a 15-0 run over the next seven minutes to cut the margin to 52-48.? Blackmon capped off the run with a jump shot.

L-R would eventually close the lead to one point at 67-66 on an offensive rebound and lay-up by freshman guard Kameko Walls (Winston-Salem, N.C.) with eight seconds remaining, but McKenzie closed out the scoring with a pair of free throws.

A three-point attempt by Lenoir-Rhyne to force overtime fell short as time expired.

Senior guard Marcus Hodges (Wake Forest, N.C.) and freshman guard Alex Watkins (Charlotte, N.C.) also scored in double figures for Lenoir-Rhyne with 13 and 12 points, respectively.

Lenoir-Rhyne next competes in the Lander New Year?s Classic in Greenwood, S.C.? L-R will face Georgia Southwestern on Monday, December 28, at 5:00 p.m., on the first day of the tournament.