That changed Tuesday night — and a senior playing the last game on his home court helped the Golden Falcons move on in the Section VI Class B2 playoffs.

Jase Smith had 15 points and a team-high nine rebounds to go along with three steals and three assists as No. 11 Falconer beat No. 14 Eden 64-52 in a first-round game at Falconer Central School.

“I think we were a little up and down at times, but we controlled the game, which is a tough thing for young guys to do,” Falconer head coach Jordan Goold said. “It got a little close here and there, but never more than a couple-possession game.”

Next up for the Golden Falcons is a 7 p.m. Thursday prequarterfinal date with No. 6 Allegany-Limestone.

Falconer’s Jase Smith goes up for a shot in Tuesday’s Section VI Class B2 first-round playoff game against Eden. P-J photo by Matt Spielman

Sophomore Mathis Baehr led Falconer with 17 points to go along with seven rebounds and two steals; junior Nate Bailey had 14 points and five assists; and freshman Rodger Markham chipped in 8 points and a team-high seven assists to go along with three steals.

” … Any time they got a little rattled, there were able to slow down, take their time, work through a good offensive set and get a bucket,” Goold said. “That’s something you hope a group of seniors can do, not a group of freshmen and sophomores.”

Chris Krencik and Taesyn Slating had 16 points apiece, while Kobe Genco — the seventh-grade son of former Silver Creek head coach and current Eden assistant coach Rob Genco — had 8 points, including a pair of 3-pointers to set the all-time single-season Raiders record with 56.

Bailey hit a 3-pointer and senior Dom Delaney added a bucket inside late in the first quarter to give Falconer a 15-10 lead and the Golden Falcons took a 15-13 lead into the second quarter.

Falconer the scored the first nine points of the second quarter and would’ve led by double digits at halftime if not for Raiders sophomore Brady Mason hitting a 3-pointer just before the buzzer.

Bailey had 12 points, including all four of his 3-pointers, in the first two quarters for the Golden Falcons.

“He gave them a whole bunch of momentum. They were sagging off of him,” Goold said of Bailey. “He shot the ball with confidence. If he’s confident, he can shoot the ball as good as anybody.”

After the break, Smith began to take control inside as he scored 7 points during the third quarter, but Falconer still could not put Eden away. The Raiders made it a 34-29 game early in the third quarter as Mason, Slating and Genco scored on consecutive trips.

Baehr and Slating then answered each other’s 3-pointers before an 8-2 Golden Falcons run created a little breathing room heading into the fourth quarter.

Falconer led 48-42 entering the final eight minutes and at three separate occasions, the Raiders had a chance to cut their deficit to four or three, but missed 3-pointers each time resulted in points at the other end of the floor for the Golden Falcons.

“I think we snuck out a couple of times. … We wanted to play help-side defense and get some soft closeouts on 3s,” Goold said. ” … If they’re going to beat us, let them beat us with the 3 and if they’re not, let them die by the 3. … We might have gotten a little lucky on a couple of possessions.”

“I don’t mind the shots because they were open. When you are wide open and you are shooting, I’m OK with it,” Eden head coach Donnie Genco said. “I thought we were having success penetrating. We were having success getting to the bucket … and then we started settling for 3s. … You’re getting away from things that worked.”

For the game, Eden went 6 of 30 from 3-point range, including just 3 of 20 over the final three quarters.

“The shots were there and the opportunities were there,” Donnie Genco said, “but we were 6 for 30, that’s why we lost the game.”

Falconer turned the ball over just six times all game, while the Raiders coughed it up 13 times, resulting in 14 points for the Golden Falcons.

“They handled the ball well,” Donnie Genco said. ” … Our Achilles’ heel is pressure. When we get a little pressure, we get rattled.”

Falconer will have to take care of the ball just as well Thursday when they take on the Gators, who advanced to the New York State Public High School Athletic Association Class B semifinals a season ago before losing to eventual champion Ichabod Crane of Section II.

“The biggest test will be on Thursday. Allegany-Limestone has seniors. They’re tough, they’re tested,” Goold said. ” … We’ll be up to the test. We’ll do our best and see what happens.”

EDEN (52)

Krencik 5 4 16, Genco 3 0 8, Wakelam 1 2 4, Mason 3 1 9, Bowden 0 0 0, Slating 7 1 16. Totals 19 8 52.

FALCONER (64)

Smith 6 3 15, Baehr 7 1 17, Wood 0 0 0, Bailey 5 0 14, Markham 2 3 8, Delaney 3 0 6, Fuller 2 0 4. Totals 25 7 64.

3-point goals–Krencik 2, Genco 2, Mason, Slating, Baehr 2, Bailey 4, Markham.

Eden 15 17 16 16 — 52

Falconer 13 10 19 10 — 64