A fast start for a red-hot West Georgia Wolves club proved too much to overcome for the Lee men's basketball team as the Flames fell short in their comeback effort, 71-66 on Wednesday night in Walker Arena.

The Flames cut the Wolves' advantage to two on twice in the final 1:17 on buckets by Beyuan Henricks but each time West Georgia had an answer. Michael Zabetakis sealed the win as he drove to the baseline, drew a foul and connected on a reverse layup.

The Wolves have now won 8 of 9 and they jumped up to an early nine-point lead in the first half. The Flames chipped away to cut the deficit to three at the half, 32-29.

Lee struggled out of the gate in the second half as the Wolves the lead to 10 at 41-31 on a 3-pointer by J.J. Barnes with 15:16 remaining promoting head coach Bubba Smith to call a timeout. West Georgia would extend the lead to 12 with 9:19 left before Hendricks and Kennedy got going to get the Flames back in the contest.

Kennedy led all scorers with 21 points and six rebounds. Hendricks followed with 13 and four assists and Michael McGuirk posted a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Lee finished with game shooting 41.2 percent from the field.

"We knew West Georgia was playing well coming in and I give them credit they wanted it more tonight," said Smith. "When you break it down this really is a simple game and hustle and effort get rewarded. I thought they were much more aggressive for the better part of the game. I like the fight we showed to get back into the contest but we've had trouble this season when we've gotten off to slow starts and we certainly did that tonight."

The Wolves 41.8 percent but cashed in 10 offensive rebounds into 20 second-chance points. Both teams finished with 38 total boards.

Kadeim Jones led the Wolves with 18 points while Zabetakis made big shots down the stretch and finished the evening with 16 points, seven rebounds and three steals.

The Flames fall to 13-7 and are now 9-5 in the GSC. West Georgia stays hot and moves to 12-10 and 9-6 in league play.

"We have yet to lose back-to-back games this year and I think that proves this team is resilient, learns from losses and comes back ready to go," noted Smith. "Nobody is going to feel sorry for us and we are certainly going to have to play well at Huntsville in a tough environment, but I think the guys are anxious to get back out on the court."

Lee will renew its rivalry with the Chargers in Huntsville on Saturday at 5 p.m. The Flames defeated UAH, 84-70 back on Dec. 18.