No. 5 Clayton State women down Wingate; tie Peach Belt record for consecutive home victories

Final	1	2	T
Wingate (6-3)	23	37	60
Clayton St. (12-1)	31	45	76
Morrow, Ga. (Athletics & Fitness Center)

Wingate	Clayton St.
Pts: Washington, Kurie - 12	Pts: Drameka Griggs - 28
Reb: Dunbar, Chantal - 9	Reb: TEAM - 7
Ast: 3 Players (#12, #14, #22 - 2)	Ast: Tanisha Woodard - 10

Team Statistics	Wingate	Clayton St.
Field Goal %	32.7% (17-52 )	48.3% (29-60 )
Rebounds	37	30
Assists	9	21
Turnovers	29	20
Pts off Turnovers	18	39
2nd Chance Pts	17	7
Pts in the Paint	24	34
Fastbreak Pts	0	18
Bench Pts	21	37

full stats

MORROW, Ga. – December 30, 2011 – With a big milestone at stake on Friday, the Clayton State Laker women's basketball team turned to guard Drameka Griggs for the spark. And the junior guard delivered.

Griggs scored a career-high 28 points as Clayton State knocked off visiting Wingate 76-60 in the Heritage Bank Holiday Classic at the Athletics and Fitness Center. The victory was the eighth straight for fifth-ranked Clayton State, which improves to 12-1 overall. More importantly, the Lakers tied the Peach Belt Conference record with their 26^th consecutive home victory.

That mark was originally set by Columbus State from 1999 to 2001. A victory over North Georgia on Tuesday will give Clayton State the longest home winning streak in Peach Belt Conference history.

Griggs scored 21 of her points in the second half as she fueled the Lakers on two key rallies. Her jump shot at the 14:43 mark sparked a 17-0 Clayton State run. She followed that with two straight transition lay-ups and another lay-up at the 11:51 mark which gave the Lakers a 54-37 lead.

However, there was no quit in Wingate. The Bulldogs answered the challenge with an 11-2 run as Nikki Burton and Kurie Washington drilled back-to-back 3-point baskets. Two free throws by Washington trimmed the Clayton State lead to 58-51 with 6:46 remaining.

But Wingate wasn't finished. A lay-up by Chantal Dunbar trimmed the Laker lead to 60-56 at the 5:18 mark and Wingate was knocking at the door. However, that was as close as the Bulldogs would get.

Clayton State countered with two transition lay-ups by Griggs, and a jump shot by Griggs to increase the Laker lead to 70-56 with 1:52 remaining. In fact, of Clayton State's 16 points in the final five minutes, Griggs accounted for 12 of them.

In addition to Griggs, Tanisha Woodard recorded a double-double with 12 points and 10 assists, while Brittany Hall also scored 12 points. Woodard scored nine of her points in the first half as the Lakers built a 31-23 at halftime. Sophomore center Shacamra Jackson added 10 points. For the game, Clayton State shot 48 percent from the field and 79 percent from the free throw line.

For Wingate (6-3), Washington scored 12 points, followed by Burton and Janitsha Williams each with nine points. Clayton State limited the Bulldogs to only 33 percent shooting from the field and forced 29 Wingate turnovers. But the Bulldogs were effective at the free throw line, shooting 88 percent (22-for-25).

Clayton State plays host to North Georgia at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday at the Athletics and Fitness Center.