ST. AUGUSTINE – The 2016-17 Flagler College Saints made an impressive debut, but they came up short in a 75-72 loss to Paine College in a mutual season opener in a non-conference men's basketball game Saturday night at Flagler Gymnasium.

Junior college transfer Cortlin Davis made a big splash in his Saints debut. He poured in 24 points and grabbed 17 rebounds, both game-highs, but it just wasn't enough. Three of his five field goals in the first half were dunks.Vaughn McCall added 14 points and six assists while Jeffercy Jean tacked on 13 points and eight rebounds. Chris Williams, another newcomer for the Saints, recorded a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Austin Howard chipped in with 11 points.

Flagler struggled from the free throw line (47.6%) and from long range (15.4%). The Saints dominated the paint as they out-scored the Lions 42-26. Flagler also forced 18 turnovers which it cashed in for 20 points.

Jared Tate led Paine with 20 points coming off of the bench. Malcom Whittington added 15 points while Kaderious Compton recorded a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Chigozie Ngene-Igwe chipped in with 10 points and nine rebounds.

The Lions led 40-35 at the half and extended their lead to as many as 15 in the second half. The Saints chipped away at the deficit and took a 68-67 lead on a fast-break dunk by Williams with 2:23 left to go. With 35 seconds left to go, Howard made a layup to give the Saints a 72-71 lead. But with 19 second left, Tate sank a jumper to give Paine the lead for good, 73-72. Flagler had a miscue with the ball at the other end as a loose ball got away and out-of-bounds which forced the Saints to foul when the Lions in-bounded the ball. Whittington sank a pair of free throws and Flagler called a timeout. The Saints turned the ball over with two seconds left to end the game.

Flagler will host the University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez on Tuesday (Nov. 15) at 5:30 p.m. at Flagler Gymnasium.