BAINBRIDGE — Up until the final seconds of Tuesday’s game, the Kingston High School Buccaneers threatened to defeat the Bainbridge High School Spartans for a second year in a row.

The Bucs varsity team, which faced the Spartans Tuesday night at Bainbridge High School, were within three points of sending the game into overtime with 50 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. A pair of free throws added on to a shot from inside by Bainbridge’s Nick Edens, however, ended the night for the Bucs with a final score of 58-54.

The non-league game against the Spartans was the first game of the 2011-12 season.

Many of the players on the team are returning from last season, which ended with a third place title for the Bucs after the 2A State Championships. The 2010-11 season began with a 64-62 victory over the Spartans. It looks like the Spartans wanted to take the rematch.

By the end of the first quarter of Tuesday’s game, the Spartans led 16-12. The Bainbridge team continued to hold a small lead of 30-25 as the game went into halftime.

The third quarter was the turnaround. The Bucs quickly changed the pace of the game and tied the Spartans 31-31. After falling behind 36-35, the Bucs took their first lead of the game 37-36 with less than 4 minutes left in the third. The Spartans were not having it.

In the fourth, the Spartans were ahead 48-43. With a steal, the Bucs reduced the Spartan lead by two. And with the clock running down, Kingston’s Richie Sander sank a three-point shot that tied the game 48-48. Kingston’s KT Deam kept the tie and the Bucs chances alive after answering with two-points of his own.

It was the shot by Edens and back-to-back penalties that ended the night for the Bucs. With less than 20 seconds left, Kingston’s Sam Byers scored the final two points the Bucs would see.