Lucky 13! Second-ranked Clayton State rolls past Francis Marion 78-50
Sloan pours in 16 points as 13-0 Lakers await showdown against Armstrong Atlantic
MORROW, Ga. --- JANUARY 6, 2006 --- The Clayton State Laker men's basketball team didn't need a last-second miracle on Saturday against visiting Peach Belt Conference opponent Francis Marion. The Lakers took care of business early.
Spearheaded by four players scoring in double-figures, the second-ranked Lakers remained undefeated on the season with a convincing 78-50 victory over Francis Marion at the Athletics and Fitness Center . The Lakers ran their school-record winning streak 13 straight games to stand 13-0 overall. More importantly, Clayton State is 2-0 in the Peach Belt heading into Wednesday's South Division showdown against in-state rival Armstrong Atlantic.
"This is an exciting team to watch," said Clayton State head coach Gordon Gibbons . "The defense got us going today and we played extremely hard, especially in the second half."
For the second straight game, the Lakers spotted the opponent an early lead as Francis Marion raced out to a 6-0 lead. But Clayton State countered with a 9-0 run and scored 30 of the game's next 35 points, never looking back. The Lakers increased the lead to 30-11 thanks to a 15-0 run midway through the first half.
Michael Sloan drained two 3-point baskets early in the rally, and then inside baskets by both Aristide Sawadogo and John Beugnot increased the Laker lead to 19 points with 4:59 remaining. Clayton State 's largest lead of the first half was 26 points on two occasions, including Jeff Trotter's lay-up with 48 seconds remaining to give the Lakers a 42-16 lead.
Todd McLaurin's lay-up early in the second half increased the Clayton State lead to 31 points, 51-20 with 17:38 remaining. Francis Marion never got closer than 20 points for the remainder of the game.
Sloan paced the Lakers with 16 points on four 3-point baskets, while Brandon Kelley scored 12 points, McLaurin scored 11 points and Sawadogo added 10 points. Beugnot paced Clayton State on the boards with 10 rebounds.
For Francis Marion (3-8, 0-2), Dominic Bishop scored 12 points.
Clayton State and Armstrong Atlantic due battle in the huge early season South Division showdown on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. at the Athletics and Fitness Center .
Laker women make it six straight with 72-62 victory over Francis Marion
Phillips scores 15 points as 17th-ranked Clayton State improves to 12-1 and 2-0 in PBC
MORROW, Ga. --- JANUARY 6, 2006 --- When you have as high a ranking and stature in your conference like the Clayton State Laker women's basketball team, you can expect a maximum effort each game from your opponent regardless of the record.
That was the case on Saturday afternoon as Clayton State out-lasted pesky Francis Marion 72-62 in Peach Belt Conference action at the Athletics and Fitness Center . The victory was the sixth straight for 17th-ranked Clayton State , which is now 12-1 overall and 2-0 in the Peach Belt.
"We know we'll get the best effort from our opposition, but I'm glad we got that kind of effort from our players," said Clayton State head coach Dennis Cox. "All game long, they (Francis Marion) worked hard, so we had to return the energy."
The Lakers won despite shooting only 31 percent from the field. However, Clayton State forced 24 Patriot turnovers and committed only 10 turnovers itself.
Clayton State overcame an early 6-5 deficit, using an 11-1 run to lead 16-7 with 13:45 remaining on a Basia Bukowska 3-point basket. Three times, the Lakers extended the lead to 10 points, including 40-30 at halftime on Roberta Phillips' 3-point basket with 56 seconds remaining.The margin grew to 12 points, 43-31 early in the second stanza, and with 11 minutes left, the Lakers led 51-42. However, freshman guard Chelsea Quinlan then sparked a 9-0 run by Francis Marion that knotted the score at 51-51 with 8:51 remaining. Her three-pointer concluded the spurt and tied the score.Clayton State then scored the next six points to regain a lead they would not relinquish. A lay-up by Katherine Kiefer drew the Patriots to within 67-62 with 58 ticks left, but following a Laker miss at the free throw stripe, Quinlan missed a three-pointer that would have cut the margin to two points. Clayton State made 3-of-4 free throws in the final seconds to seal the win.
Phillips had the big game for Clayton State , scoring 15 points on four 3-point baskets, while Shantel Ragin and Sharon Wiles both scored 12 points for the Lakers. For Francis Marion (3-10, 0-2), Shonelle Downer scored 17 points off the bench, and point guard Brittany Young dished out a whopping 13 assists.
Clayton State plays host to in-state rival Armstrong Atlantic in Peach Belt action on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. at the Athletics and Fitness Center .
