YOUNG HARRIS, Ga. – Clayton State (16-4, 8-3 PBC) used a 34-9 run to start the game and buried Young Harris (7-10, 3-7 PBC) by a 65-43 score in an NCAA Division II women's basketball game on Saturday, January 28.
 
Redshirt-senior center Andrea Benford (Madison, Ga.) led the way with 16 points, six rebounds and four steals in 23 minutes while senior center Rayven Thomas (North Las Vegas, Nev.) finished with a double-double of 10 points and 12 rebounds. Junior guard Monica Alexander (Richmond, Va.) added 10 points to close out the double-figure scorers and senior guard Dejoun Dennard (Tampa, Fla.) added eight points.
 
Wasting no time, Clayton State jumped out to a 12-1 lead behind six points from Benford over the first 6:43 of the game. That margin would balloon to 24-7 as the Lakers' senior forward finished with half of her team's points. YHC would add a bucket at the buzzer to cut it to a 15 point deficit at the end of one.
 
The onslaught would continue at the start of the second period as Clayton State scored the first 10 points for a 34-9 advantage by the 7:51 mark. After weathering that burst, the Mountain Lions got off the mat and produced an 11-4 run that closed the half and narrowed the gap to 38-20 at the break.
 
The Lakers would stretch their lead throughout the third quarter as they outscored YHC 15-10 to enter the final 10 minutes up 53-30. It would not get any better from there for the Mountain Lions as Clayton State would go on to close out the 65-43 victory despite being outscored by a point in the fourth.
 
Briana Bell finished a team-high 12 points to lead Young Harris while Jenny Vernet had 11 points, seven boards, two steals and a pair of blocks. Sarah Reid was the next highest scorer with six points on three-of-three shooting.
 
The Lakers conclude their three game road trip at Montevallo on Monday, January 30. Game time is set for 6:30 p.m. (EST) in Montevallo, Alabama.
 
NOTES
Clayton State is now 8-1 all-time against Young Harris, dating to the first meeting on January 10, 2013.