St. Francis (Pa.) holds off American University 69-62

WASHINGTON (AP) Jamaal King scored 16 of his 20 points in the first half when St. Francis (Pennsylvania) built a 17-point halftime lead and used it to cushion an American comeback in a 69-62 victory on Saturday.

Keith Braxton added 14 points and 15 rebounds for the freshman's second straight double-double, and Josh Nebo scored 15 points for the Red Flash (3-2).

Saint Francis went up by 19, 44-25, early in the second half when the Eagles (0-5) came back, cutting the deficit to five, 53-48, with 8:12 remaining after Jalen Rhea's 3-pointer. Saint Francis rebuilt the lead to double figures a couple times after that before Leon Tolksdorf's 3-pointer got the Eagles within 66-60 with 57 seconds left. But King made a pair of free throws and Braxton one to hold off American.

American's Sa'eed Nelson finished with 24 points for the second straight game with Mark Gasperini adding 16.