Derek Staton scored a season-high 28 points, but Elizabeth City State made 9-of-10 free throws in the final 1:11 to hand Mount Olive its first loss of the season, 85-80, in the opener of the Barton College 45-Second Men's Basketball Classic Friday night in Wilson, N.C.

The senior pre-season All-American brought Mount Olive (5-1) within 44-43 by converting three free throw attempts with 17:43 remaining, but the Vikings (5-2) responded by holding the Trojans without a field goal for nearly seven minutes.

Angelo Sharpless started the decisive spurt by Elizabeth City State with an assist, then finished it with a layup that gave the Vikings the biggest lead, 66-51 with 7:56 left.

Mount Olive fought back to threaten the Vikings. Down 13 with 4:20 left, Staton and Kason Cheeks combined to score the Trojans' next 11 points. Cheeks' three-point play closed the gap to 74-68 with 1:42 left. The Trojans got as close as six three more times before Darrell Patterson's three-pointer just before the buzzer provided the final tally.

Marquie Cooke converted six free throws and Quintin Spady added two more in the final minute to prevent a Trojan comeback.

Cheeks and Patterson each finished with 13 points for Mount Olive, and Dory Hines added 10 points and 11 rebounds. Mount Olive dominated the boards, outrebounding the Vikings, 44-32, including 17-3 on the offensive end.

Elizabeth City responded by shooting 54.5 percent from the field, compared to just 39 percent for the Trojans. Sharpless and Cooke finished with 20 points apiece for the Vikings. Omar Jones added 16 points off the bench.

Mount Olive was without team scoring leader Craig Hayes, who was out with an injury. His status is day-to-day.

The Trojans will face Saint Augustine's in Saturday's second round. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m.