BRADENTON, Fla. - NCF Men's Basketball led for the majority of the first half Wednesday at home against defending Sun Conference champion and No. 8-ranked Ave Maria, but could not complete the upset as it fell 85-69 to fall to 2-2 overall and 0-1 in conference play.

A Colby Chapman free throw put NCF up 39-31 with 1:59 left in the first half, but from there Ave closed out the opening half on an 8-0 run to tie the game at 39 heading into halftime.

The second half saw Gyrenes flex its muscle as it outscored NCF 46-30 to earn a hard-fought 85-69 road win.

NCF was led in scoring by Diego Eslava 17 points. He was joined in double figures by Giovanni Toscanini, who scored 16 points.

Jackson Dawson led NCF with six rebounds, while Shawn Lefresne and Alex Excellent each dished a team-high three assists.

NCF will be back in action Saturday in Miami Gardens, where it will take on Florida Memorial at 4 p.m. EST in a Sun Conference tilt.