MORROW, Ga. – A late second half run and a dominant overtime performance were too much for Clayton State (2-2, 0-0 PBC) to overcome as Shaw (3-4, 0-0 CIAA) rallied for an improbable 93-86 overtime victory in an NCAA Division II men's basketball game on Wednesday, November 29.
 
Junior forward Jaylen Taylor (Hephzibah, Ga.) posted career-highs of 16 points and 11 rebounds, four offensive, to lead the Lakers while junior forward Jamil McKee (Greenville, Ga.) finished with 14 points, seven boards and three assists.
 
Senior guard Nathan Powell (Orlando, Fla.) added 13 points, six assists and a pair of steals and senior guard Dantez Bennamon (Goose Creek, S.C.) came away with 11 points and four assists. Junior guard Justin Tuckson (Stafford, Va.) chipped in with nine points and sophomore guard Christoff Nairn (West Palm Beach, Fla.) had eight points and a career-best five caroms.
 
Neither team would give an inch over the first six minutes as the lead changed hands three times and the score deadlocked twice, eventually leaving Shaw with an 11-9 advantage. A 7-1 run over the next 1:02 would extend that lead to 18-10 by the 13:02 mark before the Lakers answered with a 10-4 stretch to pull to within 22-20 with 9:22 left.
 
The game of runs would continue as the Bears answered with a 9-0 burst to push out to a 31-20 advantage only to see Clayton State cut it to 35-29 by the 3:41 mark. Following a bucket by Shaw, the Lakers would mount a 9-3 run to close the half trailing just 40-38.
 
That would stretch to a 14-5 overall run as they took a 43-42 lead just 1:41 into the second half. The Bears answered back with a basket to take the lead right back a minute later but a slam on the other end by Taylor put Clayton State back up, 45-44, at the 17:09 mark.
 
Deadlocked at 47-47 less than a minute later, the Lakers exploded for a 19-3 run over the next 6:08 to take a 66-50 lead with 10:19 on the clock. Shaw, however, would not allow that to be the knockout punch as they rallied behind a 22-8 run to close to within 74-72 by the 3:01 mark.
 
From there, the teams would trade the next three baskets to end up at 78-74 before DeAngelo Stephens-Bell took matters into his own hands, scoring back-to-back buckets to tie it at 78-78 with a minute to go. Following a missed layup at the other end, Stephens-Bell would run the clock down before missing a jumper with seconds to go to send the game to overtime.
 
In that extra session the Bears would use a 7-2 run over the first 1:36 to take a commanding 85-80 advantage. The Lakers would cut it to 85-84 by the 2:30 mark only to see Shaw close the game on an 8-2 stretch to lock up the come-from-behind 93-86 overtime victory.
 
Former Arizona State and UNLV player Savon Goodman led the way for Shaw with a game-high 31 points along with eight rebounds and three blocks in 44 minutes of action and Stephens-Ball finished with 24 points on 9-of-14 shooting and five assists. DaVaughn Kelsie added 17 points and Cameron Golden rounded things out with nine points, five assists and three steals.
 
The Lakers return to action on Saturday, December 2 when they open Peach Belt Conference action against Flagler. Game time is set for approximately 3:30 p.m. following the women's contest.
 
NOTES
Taylor surpassed his previous career-highs of 11 points, set at LeMoyne-Owen (November 20, 2017), and eight rebounds at Columbus State (February 8, 2017) … with his 13 points, Bennamon is now just 39 points away from becoming the seventh Laker all-time to score 1,000 career points … when he reaches that milestone he will be the first to do so since Michael Sloan did so in the 2007-08 season.