AUGUSTA, Ga. – Redshirt-junior guard Aubrey McRae (Augusta, Ga.) continued his assault on the record books as he fueled Clayton State's (17-5, 15-3 PBC) 85-72 victory at Augusta (13-11, 10-8 PBC) in an NCAA Division II men's basketball game on Monday, February 12. The victory was the program's eighth straight.
 
Following a non-descript first half that saw him with just five points, McRae lit it up in the second to finish with 21 points and six boards, however, the real story came at the foul line.
 
On the night he went a perfect 13-of-13 from the charity stripe to tie a program single game record for highest percentage. He was one made free throw shy of the most while shooting 100-percent, a mark set in 1994 and owned by the program's all-time leading scorer Carlos Head.
 
While certainly the headliner, he was not the only Laker to put up a high profile performance as senior guard Nathan Powell (Orlando, Fla.) finished with 15 points and eight boards. He was joined by junior guard Justin Tuckson (Stafford, Va.) and junior forward Jaylen Taylor (Hephzibah, Ga.) with 14 and 10 points, respectively. Redshirt-junior forward JaCarl Owens (Orlando, Fla.) rounded things out with six points and as many caroms.
 
Eight points from Tuckson, six on three-pointers, over the first 2:39 fueled a game opening 12-2 burst for Clayton State. With the lead at 19-12 and 13:18 on the clock, Augusta responded with a run of their own, this a 13-2 stretch that left them with a 25-21 advantage at the 9:45 mark.
 
The Lakers would rally behind a 6-1 mini run to retake the lead at 27-26 before battling through three lead changes and a pair of ties that left the Jaguars up 30-29 with 3:40 on the clock. The teams would remain close from there as they headed to the break with Augusta holding a narrow 35-33 advantage.
 
Augusta native McRae immediately made a difference at the start of the second half as he bombed in a three, stole the Jags next pass before converting a pair of free throws and nailed a second triple, all within the first two minutes. That outstanding effort catapulted Clayton State to a 41-39 lead by the 18:08 mark.
 
It would continue to be an exchange of long balls as Shawn Moss gave Augusta back the lead before Tuckson answered with a corresponding trey at the other end, leaving the Lakers ahead 44-42 with just over three minutes gone by.
 
Over the next five-plus minutes, Augusta would turn the tables and take a 52-49 lead by the 11:35 mark and would maintain a 58-54 margin with 8:22 on the clock. A three-pointer by senior guard Dantez Bennamon (Goose Creek, S.C.), his first points of the game, and a traditional three-point play by Tuckson then flipped the script and put Clayton State up 60-58 with 8:09 left.
 
That lead would grow to 64-59 a minute later before the Jags answered with a layup at the other end but lost leading rebounder Deane Williams to fouls on the ensuing trip down the floor. The following free throws would ignite a 6-0 stretch that made it 70-61 with 4:38 to play.
 
Augusta would cut it to six, 73-67, two minutes later but that would be as close as they would get. Over the final 2:20, the Lakers made three buckets and went 6-of-6 at the foul line to salt away the 85-72 victory.
 
Kyle Doyle led the Jaguars with 13 points, seven boards and four assists while Mikkel Kolstad and Moss also notched 13 points apiece. Aaron Byrd and Tamyrik Fields each had 10 points and Tyvez Monroe finished with eight points and six rebounds.
 
The Lakers wrap up a three-game road trip as they head to the mountains of Dahlonega, Georgia to take on North Georgia on Wednesday, February 14. Game time is set for approximately 7:30 p.m. following the women's game against the Nighthawks.
 
NOTES
McRae equaled a mark held by four in the history of the program … Carlos Head went 14-of-14 at the foul line on March 7, 1994 against Georgia Southwestern while Kelsey Terry was the most recent Laker to go 10-of-10, accomplishing the feat at Lander on December 18, 2014 … All-American Brandon Robinson did the same vs. St. Augustine's (12/16/10) and Todd McLaurin did so against USC Upstate (2/3/07) … it is the third single game record McRae has tied this year, knocking down seven threes vs. Lander (1/15/18) and going 5-of-5 from beyond the arc at Georgia Southwestern (1/24/18) … he is also 16 threes away from the single season mark of 72 set by Michael Sloan in 2006-07 … the victory in Augusta was just the third in 14 meetings and first since an 83-66 win on January 4, 2006.