COLUMBIA, S.C. – The Benedict College Tigers defeated Limestone College 81-70 on Saturday afternoon.

Benedict improves to 3-3 on the season, while Limestone College falls to 1-6.

Tajh Green led the Tigers with 18 points and seven rebounds. Deon Joyner added 13 points and seven rebounds in only 17 minutes of play, while Joseph Staton contributed with 12 points and five assists.

Benedict got off to a strong start, taking an 8-0 lead after four minutes into the first half. Limestone would go on a 12-6 run to close the gap to two, 14-12, with 13:21 remaining in the half.

The Saints would find themselves down by one, 28-27, with 6:39 left in the first half. The Tigers answered with a big three-point play by Joyner to extend the lead to four and kill the run for Limestone. A layup by Aaron Bryant with two seconds left gave Benedict a 43-37 lead at the half.

The Tigers would extend their lead to as much as 18 points in the second half, after a basket from Malachi McCoy gave them a 79-61 lead. The Saints would go on a 9-2 run in the final 1:26 of the game, but that would not be enough to catch the Tigers.

Benedict will host Augusta University on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. in the HRC Arena.