Full Game Video MORROW, Ga. – In the first of three important league games, Clayton State (11-1, 5-0 PBC) battled a strong Armstrong State (9-5, 1-3 PBC) program before earning a 79-70 victory in an NCAA Division II women's basketball game on Wednesday, January 6.
Senior guard
Kenisha Jones-Barrett (Winter Haven, Fla.) led the way with 16 points, seven rebounds, four assists and four steals in 29 minutes of action. She was joined by senior center
DaQuenna Moore (Plantersville, Ga.) with 17 points and redshirt-junior center
Andrea Benford (Madison, Ga.) with 12 points, nine boards and three steals. Senior guard
Kayla Pryce (Melbourne, Fla.) rounded out the top performers with nine points, four caroms and a pair of assists.
Clayton State came out ready to play as they surged out to a 9-0 advantage over the first 2:06 and it wouldn't be until the 7:24 mark that ASU notched their first bucket. They would recover from that early blitz as they closed to within 15-12 with 3:42 left in the first. The Lakers would respond with a 7-2 burst before the Pirates cut it to 22-20 by the end of the first.
After an exchange of baskets at the start of the second, Clayton State came away with an 8-3 stretch to push it to a 32-25 advantage by the 5:09 mark. From there, Armstrong would go on to close the first half with an 11-6 run to narrow the margin to 38-36 by the break.
Following a brief tie to start the third period, the Lakers pushed to a 44-40 lead before ASU responded with a 7-0 run to take the lead at 47-44. Back-to-back baskets gave Clayton State back the lead in the next minute and sparked a 13-6 stretch that flipped the script to a 57-53 lead at the 1:45 mark.
Having closed the third with a 58-55 lead, the Lakers continued to hold a narrow three-point lead, this time at 66-63 with 6:24 to play. At that point, they stepped it up and put together a critical 11-1 run over the next 1:36 that gave them a commanding 77-64 lead. That would be all they would need as they salted away the 79-70 victory over the final 2:48.
B'Kiya Webb was the driving force for the Pirates with a double-double of 15 points and 12 rebounds while Deundria Clark finished with eight points, seven boards and five assists in 27 minutes. Machala Raymonville led all scorers with 18 points and Lexy Schoonover had 10 points and three steals.
The Lakers hit the road for their next outing as they travel to North Georgia on Saturday, January 9. Game time is set for 1:30 p.m. in Dahlonega, Georgia.
NOTESClayton State now travels to North Georgia (11-2) and Georgia College (12-1) in two key Peach Belt games.
