LAKE WALES, Fla. --- The Ave Maria men's basketball team opened conference play on Thursday night at Warner. The Gyrenes gave the 19th-ranked Royals all they could handle, falling 86-80. AMU drops to 6-1 on the season with the loss.
 
AMU used a balance effort to build a 45-44 first half advantage and lead for a majority of the second half. Leo Behrend led five Gyrenes in double-figures with 18 points, seven rebounds, six assists, and five assists.
 
Romello Bates and Caelen Watts each finished with 15 points while Nemanja Brankov and Greenan Sullivan tallied 12 points and 10 points, respectively.
 
A back-and-forth opening 11 minutes featured seven ties and six lead changes. Tied at 25, Warner  went on a 12-2 run to take a 10-point lead. After a pair of jumpers and threes by Watts and Sullivan brought AMU to within two, a Brankov jumper tied the game at 41 with 1:39 to play in the first.
 
The Blue and Green shot 46 percent from the field and were 5-for-15 from three in the first half en route to a 45-44 advantage after 20 minutes of play.
 
AMU maintained their lead early in the second half and extended it to a game-high eight point lead with 11:47 to play after a three by Gianpaolo Riccio and a jumper by Brankov. As Warner began to cut into the Gyrene lead, Watts hit a pair of threes to keep AMU in front 68-66.
 
With the game tied at 72, Warner made a jumper and then got a steal and fast-break jumper to quickly take a four-point lead with 2:13 remaining. Trailing by five, Bates hit a three with 21 seconds to play to bring the Gyrenes within two. The Royals converted all four free throws in the final 21 seconds to end Ave Maria's chances at an upset bid.
 
Ave Maria returns to action on Saturday when they host Webber at 4 p.m.