FAYETTE, Mo. - Eric Franklin drilled a game-winning three-point bucket as part of his game-high 17 points with .9 seconds left in the second half to give Central Methodist a 67-65 win over Avila on Saturday inside Puckett Field House. The Runnin' Eagles (11-13, 5-9 HAAC) picked up their second straight Heart of America Athletic Conference victory after defeating the Eagles (15-10, 8-6 HAAC).

Avila opened the game strong, taking an early 12-4 lead. Austin Stockard�hit back-to-back three-pointers�to spark the Eagles. Central Methodist answered with an 8-0 run. Mike Regan started the spurt with a trey, and a Franklin shot from distance tied the score at 12 with 8:40 on the clock.

The Runnin' Eagles took their first lead at the 5:20 mark. Alex Barner scored a hoop and free throw to give his team a 19-16 advantage. Franklin found the bottom of the net from distance 50 seconds later to increase the home team's lead to six points.

Avila ended the half outscoring Central Methodist 10-4 as the game went into intermission tied at 26. The Runnin' Eagles doubled-up Avila on points in the paint, 16-8, after the first 20 minutes of play.

A Regan block on the defensive end�of the court�nine minutes into the second half turned into a fastbreak layup for Melvin Tillman. Tillman again found the bottom of the net on a layup on the next trip down the court to give Central Methodist a 46-42 advantage.

Tillman�took his defender into the post for a bucket to give the Runnin' Eagles a 59-58 lead with�3:17 remaining in the game. Avila's Curtis Churchman and Franklin traded three-pointers on back-to-back possessions to make the score 62-61 in favor of Central Methodist.

With the home team trailing 65-64 with 24.1 seconds left, Franklin forced an over-and-back call on Kelby Phelps to setup the final possession. Tillman found Franklin for the game-winning shot and the final margin.

Tillman finished the game wiht 16 points. Barner and Elliott Black had nine apiece.

Phelps and Lance Miller led Avila offensively with 14 points apiece. Zach Smith had 13. Stockard recorded 10.

Central Methodist hit 50% (24-of-48) of its shots in the contest. Avila was 27-of-57 (47.4%) from the floor. The Runnin' Eagles were 12-of-17 (70.6%) from the charity stripe, while�the visitors�attempted only seven free throws in the game,�making�three of them.

Central Methodist will host Missouri Valley on Thursday, Feb. 11. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.