INSTITUTE, W.Va. – Notre Dame College shot the ball well on Saturday afternoon, scoring 53 second half points. West Virginia State University opened up a large second half lead, and held off the Falcons' late push, for a 97-90 win.

The Falcons came out of the gate shooting 75-percent through the first five minutes of the game. Senior Drew Scarberry knocked down a three pointer with 15:27 on the clock, putting NDC on top by nine points, 14-5.

Over the next four minutes, the Yellow Jackets came back with an 11-2 run to tie the game at 16.

Although WVSU tied the game several times, the Falcons did not allow the lead to slip away until the 5:41-mark in the first half. James Hagins made a layup and gave West Virginia State a 27-25 lead.

The lead never extended more than three points for either team the rest of the way and after freshman Jordan Burton knocked down a pair of free throws for NDC, the two teams went to their locker rooms tied at 37. The first 20 minutes of the game featured seven lead changes and eight ties.

The Falcons shot 52-percent from the field in the first half. Scarberry and sophomore Levi Frankland led all scorers with 12 points, each. Scarberry shot 63-percent and made two three pointers.

To begin the second half, a 12-2 run gave the Yellow Jackets a ten-point lead, with 16:39 to go in the game. A little over two minutes later, a layup by Michal Seals gave West Virginia State a 56-45 advantage.

Scarberry then knocked down a three pointer on NDC's next possession. Senior Bruce Hodges III stole the ball for the Falcons, leading to a layup by senior Deanthony Owens, who was also fouled. He finished the three-point play with a free throw.

Still trailing by seven points, 58-51, Frankland scored on a layup, Scarberry hit a three and Frankland finished off a fast break with a layup. All of that was a part of a 13-2 Notre Dame run, which tied the game at 58 with 11:37 on the clock.

West Virginia State responded and pushed their lead to as many as 19 points with just over four minutes to go.

Incredibly, Notre Dame trailed by only six points with 30-seconds remaining. During the run, NDC shot 67-percent from the field and went 5-for-6 at the free throw line. In all, the 18-4 run made the game just a two possession difference. Owens and Scarberry combined for 14 points during the run.

A few players on both sides put up big second half numbers. For NDC, Scarberry had 14 points on 57-percent shooting, Frankland added 10 points on 50-percent shooting and Owens added 13 points on 50-percent shooting. For WVSU in the second half, Seals totaled 18 points and four assists while Glen Abram made seven shots and had 22 points.

For the game, Scarberry scored 26 points and grabbed seven rebounds. He also shot 60-percent and made four 3-pointers. Frankland added 22 points and Owens had 20 points, with both players shooting 50-percent. As a team, the Falcons totaled 48 points in the paint and shot the ball at 55-percent from the field.

Notre Dame will host No. 16 West Liberty University on February 26. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.