RALEIGH — With 46 seconds left and Athens Drive leading Green Hope by four, Jaguars guard Quentin Edmundson leaped out of bounds to retrieve a loose ball, calling a timeout in mid-air before falling with a thud on the floor.

Earlier in the game, Athens guard Grayson Eubanks ripped away a one handed rebound from a taller Green Hope player, grabbing the board but landing squarely on his tailbone.

Why the hustle-at-all-cost mentality?

“Coach said to hustle. That’s what we do,” Edmundson said. “We try and hustle.”

That kind of effort proved to be a major factor for the Jaguars on Friday night against the Falcons, as Athens held off a relentless Green Hope squad to earn a 59-55 home win.

The Jaguars took the lead with a 3-pointer from Edmundson that made it 5-4 with less than two minutes gone in the game, sparking an 11-2 run to give Athens some early momentum.

“It was real important. We had to set a tone to get us going, so it was real big to get off to a quick start,” said Athens coach Robert Clemons.

Athens wouldn’t look back, either, leading for the rest of the game despite the comeback efforts of the Falcons.

The Jags stretched their lead to as many as nine, but the Falcons refused to go away. Green Hope steadily chipped into Athens’ lead, but just couldn’t quite get over the hump.

“We had some shots that didn’t go down that we normally make,” Green hope coach Mickey Bissette said. “I’ll give them credit though. We just need to make some shots and we’ll be fine.”

The Falcons made things interesting with 11 seconds left.

Trailing Athens 57-52, Green Hope guard Stephen Edwards was fouled on a 3-point attempt. He drained all three free throws to make it 57-55.

On the ensuing play, Green Hope’s Sam Archer was whistled for an intentional foul, giving Athens two free throws, the ball, and the chance to make it a two-possession game.

Athens senior Ulysses Watkins, who led the Jags with 20 points, knocked down one of two free throws with 4.4 seconds left to extend the Jags’ lead to three. With the ball back, Josh Davis was fouled and hit a free throw with 3.6 seconds to make it the final 59-55.

Clemons praised the Jags for keeping their composure against a Green Hope team that cranked up the full-court pressure and had a significant inside presence in 6-10 center J.D. Pelham.

“We tried our best at keeping our cool and keeping our composure,” Clemons said. “A couple of times we got frustrated, but we had enough composure. They understood the position we were in and the impact of this game.”