Deshaune Green took advantage of a surprise starting nod, recording his first career double-double, and Mahamed Ibrahim hit a pair of free throws with seven seconds remaining to help Mount Olive stave off upstart St. Andrews 89-86 in Conference Carolinas men's basketball Tuesday night in Laurinburg, N.C.

Green, starting due to injuries, scored 16 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. He was one of five Trojans to score in double figures. Mount Olive needed all the points it could get as the Knights gave the Trojans all they wanted.

Mount Olive (18-7 overall, 11-4 Conference Carolinas) trailed just twice in the contest, but the Trojans simply could not pull away.

The Trojans led just 43-40 at halftime, then started the second half with a 10-5 run to build its biggest lead with 17:16 remaining. Conference Player of the Week Craig Hayes hit a jumper and a three-pointer during the run and Ibrahim added another three-pointer during the run.

Less than five minutes later, the Knights pulled even at 60-60 on a jumper by Demetrius Monroe. St. Andrews tied the game twice more before pulling ahead for the last time on a three-pointer by Michael Dunkins with 5:13 left.

Dory Hines hit a pair of jumpers and Green added another to put the Trojans ahead for good. A Derek Staton free throw gave Mount Olive an 85-79 lead with 47 seconds left, but the Knights had one more rally left in it.

Ryan Streater hit a pair of free throws, then Aaron Christian converted a three-point play with 27 seconds left to cut the lead to 87-84. St. Andrews benefitted from five missed Trojan free throws in the final minute to stay within striking distance. After two missed Mount Olive free throws with 24 seconds left, the Knights had the ball with a chance to tie, but Kendall Hargrove came up with a steal, and Ibrahim hit a pair of free throws to put the game away.

Staton led the Trojans with 18 points, while Ibrahim, Hayes and Ewon Wright added 14 apiece. Green's 11 rebounds more than doubled his previous season-best of five against North Greenville and Pfeiffer. As a team, the Trojans out-rebounded St. Andrews 40-27. Green accounted for seven of Mount Olive's 20 offensive rebounds.

Hines led the Trojans with 11 assists.

The Knights stayed close thanks to an 18-of-19 shooting performance from the free throw line and 10-of-19 from three-point range.

Streater finished with a game-high 25 points, while Antonio Moffitt scored 21, Christian added 19 and Dunkins delivered 10.

Mount Olive closes out the regular season Saturday night when the Trojans travel to Eastern Division champion Queens University beginning at 7 p.m. Mount Olive has clinched second place in the division and a first-round home game next Tuesday night in the Conference Carolinas Tournament opener. The Trojans will meet the Western Division's third-place finisher.