MORROW, Ga. – Clayton State (2-1, 0-0 PBC) would battle back from a 10 point fourth quarter deficit and it would take a buzzer beater three as Tusculum (3-0, 0-0 SAC) escaped The Loch with a 65-62 victory in an NCAA Division II women's basketball game on Thursday, November 15.
 
Junior guard Taneria Wilson (Fort Pierce, Fla.) had the best game of her young career with 19 points, six steals and six rebounds in 31 minutes to pace the Lakers. Right behind her was senior center Aleisha Merriweather (Augusta, Ga.) with a double-double of 11 points and a career-high 12 rebounds, five of which were offensive.
 
Senior forward Velencia Johnson (Hoover, Ala.) added 15 points on 7-of-13 shooting to go with three steals and sophomore guard Tatiana Foster (Atlanta, Ga.) added nine points and four caroms. Redshirt-senior guard Monica Alexander (Richmond, Va.) chipped in with a career-best seven boards.
 
After deadlocking three times in the first four minutes, the last at 8-8, a three by Alexander with 5:53 on the clock keyed a 7-0 burst that left the Lakers with a 15-8 advantage. TU would then use a 10-4 burst to close the quarter trailing just 19-18.
 
With the lead at 21-20 a minute and a half into the second, Clayton State used a 10-3 run fueled by six points from Wilson to extend to a 31-23 lead with 5:44 remaining in the half. A mini 5-0 burst by the Pioneers cut it to three before the Lakers scored 10 of the final 14 points to take a 41-32 margin into the break.
 
Things would change dramatically in the third quarter, however, as Tusculum opened on fire. Over the first 7:52 they mounted a massive 22-5 run behind seven points from Jasmine Williams and five from Jalia Arnwine to flip the script and take a 54-46 lead. Clayton State stemmed the tied before the end of the period, closing to 57-52 with 36 seconds left.
 
A layup by Lovely Locklear with seven seconds on the clock, combined with a triple by Sydney Wilson to open the fourth, then pushed the lead to 10 at 62-52 with 9:15 to play. Undaunted, Clayton State battled back as a pair of jumpers by Johnson and a bucket by Wilson closed the gap to 62-59 with 1:42 to play.
 
TU proceeded to turn the ball over on their next possession but the Lakers could not take advantage and quickly found themselves back on defense 17 seconds later. And that defense would come in the form of Wilson, who notched a pair of steals over the next 37 seconds, taking the second one coast-to-coast to cut it to 62-61 with 47 seconds left.
 
Unable to convert on the traditional three-point play, Wilson would make up for it with another steal, this time resulting in a foul and a 1-of-2 performance at the line from redshirt-junior guard Madison Newby (Lawrenceville, Ga.) that tied the game at 62-62 at the 34 second mark.
 
The Pioneers hauled in the rebound off the second attempt, and following a timeout, ran the clock down to six seconds before missing a jumper. Alexander ripped down the board but was called for a travel as she went to the floor with 3.4 seconds remaining.
 
That gave Tusculum a second try, one which would see them inbound from under the basket, beyond the three-point arc to Callie Patterson. Positioned straight away and with time running out she turned and threw up a hailmary – that found its way in at the buzzer for a 65-62 victory.
 
Mia Long led TU with 11 points, six steals and a pair of assists while Wilson and Yolizma Cupidan each had 11 points. They added five and four boards, respectively, and Arnwine finished with 10 points. Locklear rounded things out with four steals on the night.
 
The Lakers now hit the road for the next month, beginning at No. 3 Carson-Newman on Tuesday, November 20. Game time set for 6 p.m. in Jefferson City, Tennessee.
 
NOTES
Merriweather surpassed her previous career-high of 11 boards set against Georgia College (2/7/18) while Alexander reset her personal best from six rebounds, which she had accomplished twice before … the last of those came against Lander in the Peach Belt Conference Tournament on March 4, 2017.
 

Tusculum vs. Clayton State (11/15/18)