MORROW, Ga. – The second year under head coach Jimmy Link will feature a loaded schedule as Clayton State men's basketball will take on six NCAA Tournament teams and a pair of league champions as part of the 2016-17 slate.
 
The Lakers will face two of those teams in their first five games, beginning with the 2016 PBC/SAC Challenge in Charlotte, North Carolina. After opening with Anderson (7-21) on November 11, they'll take on host Queens (25-7) a day later.
 
That program finished second in the South Atlantic Conference behind eventual national runner-up Lincoln Memorial and defeated Columbus State in the first round of the NCAA Division II Tournament. That performance left them with a final national ranking of No. 20.
 
After that, Clayton State will return to The Loch for their home opener against first-time opponent LeMoyne-Owen (16-15) on November 17 and then head to Shaw (12-17) four days later.
 
When they come back on November 26, it will be for a season-high five-game homestand beginning with Conference Carolinas Regular Season and Tournament Champion King (25-7). One of the six NCAA Tournament teams on the schedule, the Tornado's 25 wins equals Queens as the most of any 2016-17 opponent.
 
The Lakers will then host Virginia Union (16-14) on November 28 and NAIA member Allen (11-18) on December 5 before facing St. Leo (19-12) eight days later. The Lions reached the NCAA Tournament before falling to No. 1 seed and eventual third round qualifier Alabama-Huntsville.
 
That five-game homestretch will cap off early on December 15 as they host neighboring Carver at 11 a.m. That game will be this year's Middle Schools Honors Day game where "A" Honor Roll honorees from Clayton County will be recognized prior to the game. Last year the game drew more than 1,600 fans for the women's game vs. West Georgia.
 
Not only does that game mark the end of an extended homestand, it ushers in the Peach Belt Conference portion of the schedule. That will begin with a trip to UNC Pembroke (15-13) on December 17 before returning home two days later to take on USC Aiken (6-20) and close out 2015.
 
A pair of road games await the Lakers when they come back on January 4 as they head to PBC Tournament Champion and NCAA Tournament qualifier Lander (22-10) and then Francis Marion (17-12).
 
The Lakers will then alternate home and away over the next five, beginning with Augusta (18-11) at home on January 9 before traveling to Armstrong (12-15) five days later and home again vs. Flagler (8-20) on January 16.
 
Following a trip to North Georgia (7-21), they'll return home to take on rival Columbus State (21-8) on January 18 and 21, respectively. The Cougars won the PBC West Division and reached the NCAA Tournament last season.
 
A season-high three-game road trip is up next as Clayton State heads to Georgia Southwestern (11-15) on January 25, Young Harris (15-14) on January 28 and Montevallo (19-10) on January 30. The latter is a perennial power in the PBC and made the NCAA's before dropping a one-point decision to Wingate in the first round.
 
Entering February, the Lakers will head into the homestretch as they host Georgia College (18-11) and North Georgia and the first and sixth of the month. In what could potentially be a game with huge PBC implications, Clayton State will head to Columbus State for the second game in the series on February 8.
 
That month will then finish up with three of four games at home. Home contests against Georgia Southwestern and Young Harris on February 11 and 15, respectively, will open it up with a road trip to Georgia College three days later.
 
The Lakers will close the regular season as they host Montevallo on Senior Day on February 22. That will be their eighth game against an NCAA Tournament team from 2015-16.
 
Following the conclusion of the regular season, the Lakers will advance to the Peach Belt Conference Tournament, with quarterfinal action being held on campus sites on February 25. With a victory, they will advance to the league's Final Four on March 4-5, which will be played at the site of highest remaining East Division women's team.

The league champion will then advance to the 2017 NCAA Division II Tournament, with Southeast Regional action being contested from March 10-13 at the highest regionally ranked program that submitted a bid to host. The Southeast Region Champion will then advance to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight in Sioux Falls, South Dakota from March 22-25.

Full details on the Clayton State men's basketball schedule can be found on www.ClaytonStateSports.com, the official online home of Laker Athletics.