AUGUSTA, Ga. – The University of North Georgia (UNG) men's basketball team dropped a tight road game 65-51 at Augusta on Saturday.

The loss dropped UNG to 16-12 (8-8 Peach Belt) on the season while the Jaguars improved to 18-8 (12-4 Peach Belt).

The Nighthawks were led in scoring by junior guard AJ White who continues to play like the leader UNG has been in need of lately.

White dropped 23 points on 10-of-20 shooting with six rebounds and four assists. He finished the game as UNG's leader in points, rebounds and assists. 

White has gone on a four-game tear in the last week of play. In the last seven days he's averaging 22 points, four rebounds and 3.7 assists all of which are above his season averages.

Junior guard Cayden Charles was the only Nighthawk to join White in double figure scoring Saturday. He put up 15 points with three rebounds and five steals against the Jaguars.

Having already clinched a berth in the PBC Tournament, Saturday's game served as an opportunity for UNG to improve its seeding against the second-place Jaguars.

Despite never leading in the first half, the Nighthawks kept up with Augusta and only trailed 27-25 at the break.

UNG took its first lead of the game at the 18:02 mark in the second half behind a transition layup from junior center Colin Turner as freshman forward Zack Hawkinson recorded a steal and the assist on the play.

Trailing 38-35 with 14:07 to play, Charles drilled a three-pointer that sparked an 11-0 Nighthawk run as the team took its largest lead of the game at eight points with less than 10 minutes to play.

The Nighthawks held the lead until 1:32 left in the game when Jaguar Demitri Gardner knocked down a three-pointer to claim a 60-58 lead for Augusta. 

The next time down the floor, Charles drove the lane and converted on a layup while drawing a foul. His old-fashioned three-point play put the Nighthawks up 61-60 with only 39 seconds on the clock.

Augusta's Evan Joyner then hit a clutch three on the ensuing possession to put the Jaguars ahead by two points with 18 seconds remaining.

UNG had a chance to tie or take the lead in the closing seconds but White slipped on a wet spot along the baseline as he drove to the basket. The turnover forced the Nighthawks to intentionally foul John St. Germain III who knocked down both free throws to help the Jaguars escape with a 65-61 win.

UNG currently resides in a tie for sixth place in the PBC standings with Flagler at 8-8 in conference play this year. The best the team can finish is fifth as postseason play is around the corner.

The Nighthawks will head to Aiken, S.C. for their final road game of the season on Wednesday, Feb. 26. Tip off at USC Aiken takes place at 7:30 p.m. The last time UNG took the floor at the USC Aiken Convocation Center, it defeated Flagler 70-60 in the PBC Tournament Championship.