ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – Clayton State (7-19, 5-13 PBC) could not overcome a late first half rally as Flagler (13-14, 9-10 PBC) came away with a 93-74 decision in an NCAA Division II men's basketball game on Wednesday, February 26.
 
Senior guard Kyle Kincey (Tallahassee, Fla.) led the Lakers with 17 points, seven assists and three steals while redshirt-junior center Tionne Williams, Jr. (Phenix City, Ala.) just missed a double-double with 10 points, eight boards and a pair of blocks to go with two assists.
 
Sophomore forward Ricardo Saams, Jr. (Miramar, Fla.) put up 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting and hauled in six rebounds and junior guard Byron Abrams (Conyers, Ga.) finished with 13 points behind three triples. Sophomore guard Arusha Hunter (Snellville, Ga.) rounded out the top performers with eight points and five caroms in 16 minutes.
 
The Saints would come out on fire as they raced out to a 14-6 lead behind six points from Damerit Brown and five from Derrick Ellis, Jr. before Clayton State scored 10 of the next 17 points to pull to within 21-16 by the 12:53 mark. A pair of threes would then key an 8-0 burst that extended the lead to 29-16 but would not deter the Lakers.
 
Over a span of 5:21, six different scorers would fuel a 16-8 run that winnowed the margin all the way down to 37-32 with 6:21 left in the half but Flagler wasn't done. In what turned out to be a game of runs, they notched the final one of the opening stanza as they went on a 14-2 run to take a 51-34 lead into the break.
 
That margin would grow to 22 points, 59-37, over the first three and a half minutes of the second half but it wouldn't stay there. At that point the Lakers got off the deck and put together an 18-8 run that brought them to within 12 points at 67-55 with 11:21 on the clock.
 
Ten straight points by the Saints, however, would quell that rally and stretch the deficit back to 22 at 77-55 with just under eight minutes remaining. From there Flagler would salt away the 93-74 victory.
 
Gedi Juozapaitis led FC with 27 points, 11 rebounds and three assists while Ellis, Jr. finished with 15 points and eight boards. Chris Metzger just missed a double-double with eight points and nine caroms and Damir Hadzic added 16 points on 7-of-13 shooting to go with seven rebounds. Brown closed things out with nine points.
 
The Lakers close the season on Senior Day when they return home to take on North Georgia on Saturday, February 29. Game time is set for approximately 3:30 p.m. at The Loch following the women's contest.
 
NOTES
Kincey will enter the final game of his career needing 14 points to reach 1,000 for his career.