MORROW, Ga. – Clayton State (14-11, 9-9 PBC) was unable to hold onto a 17 point first half lead as Young Harris (15-12, 13-5 PBC) battled back to earn a 94-91 victory in an NCAA Division II men's basketball game on Saturday, February 20. The game was played in front of a Homecoming record 1,457 fans at The Loch.
 
Sophomore guard Nathan Powell (Orlando, Fla.) delivered career-highs of 23 points, nine field goals and 37 minutes to go along with nine rebounds to pace the Lakers. He was joined by junior forward Alfonso Davis (Bronx, N.Y.) who recorded his 13^th game of at least 20 points as he finished with 26 points, five rebounds and a pair of blocks.
 
Senior forward Takija Knight (Crawfordville, Fla.) came away with a solid 12 points and eight rebounds in 25 minutes and sophomore guard Dantez Bennamon (Goose Creek, S.C.) added 10 points, five boards and a pair of assists.
 
Clayton State would come out on fire as they exploded for a 25-8 lead over the first 8:05 of the game. During that stretch, Davis scored 10 of the Lakers points and six points from Powell, including a thunderous one handed dunk straight down the lane.
 
They would maintain that impressive lead with a 41-26 margin with 6:34 left in the half before the Mountain Lions came to life. Over that remaining amount of time, YHC would come surging back as they outscored the Lakers 16-7 to narrow the gap to 48-42 by the break.
 
Young Harris would continue to claw away at that margin as they eventually evened the score at 65-65 with 13:10 on the clock. Over the next two minutes, however, the lead would change hands six times and deadlock twice. The last of those lead changes would see the Mountain Lions take a 73-74 lead and extend to an 84-77 advantage by the 6:58 mark.
 
From there, Clayton State battled back to within three at 92-89 when Powell hit a pair of free throws with 2:19 on the clock. After more than two minutes with neither team being able to scratch a point, YHC broke through with free throws by C.J. Wilson to push to a five point advantage with 13 seconds left.
 
The Lakers would answer with a Davis layup at the other end to cut it to three and benefit from the missed front end of a one-and-one. Corralling the rebound with four seconds to play, redshirt-freshman guard Marquise Clark (Miami, Fla.) launched a long front court three-pointer that fell short of the rim and sealed the 94-91 decision.
 
C.J. Wilson exploded for a game-high 35 points and added eight rebounds and three assists while Bjorn Walker finished with a double-double of 14 points and 10 rebounds. Ben Waterhouse knocked down three triples on his way to 17 points and J.B. Charles had 14 points. Marques McKoy chipped in with 11 points and five caroms.
 
The Lakers wrap up the season on Wednesday, February 24 when they host rival Columbus State. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. at The Loch.