MORROW, Ga. – A 17-2 late second half run would prove to be the deciding factor as Clayton State (8-15, 5-12 PBC) dropped a hard fought 87-80 decision to Flagler (8-15, 5-12 PBC) in an NCAA Division II men's basketball game on Saturday, February 16.
 
Senior guard Justin Tuckson (Stafford, Va.) led the Lakers with 19 points behind the force of five threes and added three assists and four rebounds while junior guard Kyle Kincey (Tallahassee, Fla.) finished with 16 points and eight boards.
 
Redshirt-senior guard Aubrey McRae (Augusta, Ga.) added 13 points and eight caroms and redshirt-senior forward JaCarl Owens (Orlando, Fla.) had 13 points. Freshman forward Ricardo Saams, Jr. (Miramar, Fla.) notched seven points and as many rebounds and junior guard D'von Moore (Statesboro, Ga.) chipped in with eight points.
 
Flagler exploded out of the gate as they scored the first seven points on their way to a 12-4 lead by the 15:40 mark. Just as quickly as it came, it went away as Clayton State responded with an 8-0 run fueled by a pair of threes by Tuckson to even it up at 12-12 just over a minute later.
 
Back-to-back layups by the Saints put them back ahead by four but, again, it would not last as the Lakers answered with nine of the next 13 points over a span of 2:41 to retake the lead at 21-16 with 10:27 on the clock.
 
With the margin cut to just one at 21-20 just under the seven minute mark, a four-point play by McRae stretched the lead back out and helped power a 16-8 run to close the half with a 37-28 lead. That rally was capped off by a steal from Tuckson, a quick pass into the front court and a thunderous two-handed jam by freshman forward Gabriel Joseph-Bryan (Bronx, N.Y.) that came just under the buzzer.
 
With the margin at 46-38 through the first three minutes of the second half, the tide would turn when Gedi Juozapaitis drove the extended left baseline and threw down a one-handed tomahawk to ignite what would be a 17-2 run that would put Flagler up 55-48 by the 9:22 mark.
 
Clayton State would get within two on four occasions in the next three minutes but could not get over the hump as the Saints pushed back out to a double-digit lead at 76-66. From there they would not let the Lakers any closer than seven points on their way to the 87-80 victory.
 
Juozapaitis erupted for a game-high 35 points on 11-of-17 shooting and added six rebounds and a pair of steals while Vaughn McCall wasn't far behind with 24 points and five caroms. Jeffercy Jean helped fuel that offense with five assists to go with 11 points and seven boards and Chris Metzger hauled in 10 off the glass. DeMari Davis rounded things out with 10 points and five rebounds.
 
The Lakers return to action on Monday, February 18 when they host Augusta. Game time is set for approximately 7:30 p.m. following the women's contest at The Loch.
 

Flagler vs. Clayton State (2/16/19)