MORROW, Ga. – Despite being postponed twice by a pandemic, the 2021 Clayton State Athletics Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony finally welcomed teammates and supporters to the Morrow Center to celebrate one of the most successful eras of Clayton State Basketball on February 11, 2022. 
 
Joined by family, friends, teammates and several current members of the Hall of Fame, the Class of 2021 consisted of former women's basketball head coach Dennis Cox and the 2010-11 Clayton State women's basketball team that captured the 2011 NCAA Division II Women's Basketball National Championship.
 
The 15 members of the historic basketball team will now forever be remembered not only as one of the greatest Clayton State teams, but one of the one greatest teams in NCAA history.

Friday's ceremony welcomed a sold-out crowd of over 170 attendees, its largest to date. The night began with a homage to the 2010-11 season as the championship team was introduced one-by-one as supporters and the Laker cheerleaders welcomed the individuals into the banquet room.
      
 










The night was capped with a special presentation from City of Morrow Mayor John Lampl, who presented the individuals with Keys to the City of Morrow.
 
Clayton State Athletics is proud to have Coach Dennis Cox and the 2011 Women's Basketball National Championship team inducted to the Clayton State Athletics Hall of Fame.

 
The Class of 2021
Dennis Cox (Women's Basketball Head Coach, 2004-2014)
Presented by Kaleena Coleman '06
Arguably one of the most successful coaches in the Southeast Region and Peach Belt Conference, Cox was responsible for building a national contending program that has endured to this day.
 
While leading the Lakers, Coach Cox amassed a 268 and 57 overall record, making him the all-time winningest coach of any of the Clayton State programs. He also left Clayton State with 151 Peach Belt Conference wins.
 
As the Lakers head coach, Coach Cox guided his teams to 10-straight NCAA Division II Southeast Regional appearances, four Elite Eight appearances, two Final Four appearances and one National Championship. Clayton State also claimed seven Peach Belt Conference Regular Season titles and four PBC Tournament titles.
 
Following the National Championship season, the Lakers produced a 32 and 1 season in 2012, only losing in the Elite Eight. After the 2013-14 season, Coach Cox was the second- winningest active head coach in Division II and is currently the 30^th winningest coach all-time in Division II.
 
During his tenure, Coach Cox produced two All-Americans, 23 All-PBC student-athletes, one PBC Player of the Year, one PBC Freshman of the Year and four-straight PBC Defensive Players of the Year.
 
Individually, Coach Cox was named the WBCA Division II National Coach of the Year in 2011, was a three-time WBCA Division II Southeast Region Coach of the Year and was a three-time PBC Coach of the Year. 
 
Following his time with Clayton State, he left with two, one-loss seasons and had only one season with double-digit losses.
 
 
The 2011 NCAA Division II Women's Basketball National Champions – Clayton State University
Presented by Mason Barfield
Led by head coach Dennis Cox and assistant coach Kaleena Coleman, the 2011 National Championship team consisted of 13 student-athletes: Timethia Bennett, Latonda Bruce, Keona Dixon, Breanna Fort, Alexiss Griffin, Drameka Griggs, Brittany Hall, Renee Jackson, Shacamra Jackson, Genesis Kelly, Kayla Mobley, Teshymia Tillman and Tanisha Woodard.
 
Clayton State finished the 2010-11 season with a 35-1 record after opening the year with 29 consecutive wins that featured victories over three nationally ranked opponents.
 
Arguably, one of the most thrilling wins of the season came at home on February 10 when Clayton State hosted the top-ranked Lander Bearcats. In a battle of unbeatens, the #2 Lakers found themselves trailing 79-69 with 4:14 left to play. Refusing to accept defeat, Clayton State closed the game with a 14-2 run to knock off their PBC rival and keep the perfect season alive.
 
The Lakers remained on the winning path, capturing the regular-season conference title with a perfect 17-0 conference record. Clayton State entered the PBC tournament and rolled past Montevallo, 90-48, in the first-round before falling to USC Aiken, 73-72, in the semifinals for its first and only loss of the season.
 
After missing out on a conference tournament title and an undefeated season, Clayton State would still host the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional Tournament. With the pressure of a perfect season gone, the Dennis Cox led team rolled through the first three games, winning by an average of 22.3 points.
 
The Elite Eight in St. Joseph, Missouri was the same story for Clayton State. This time, the winning margin was 19.6 points. They took down Bentley University in the Elite Eight and Shaw University in the Final Four before downing #3 Michigan Tech, 69-50, in the championship game. Teshymia Tillman would go on to earn MVP honors.
 
A completely balanced team, the Lakers posted the nation's best scoring margin of 22.4 and led the country in steals per game with 17.9. Dominate on both ends of the court, Clayton State averaged 79.8 points per game while holding opponents to 57.4 points a game.
 
The 2011 Clayton State Women's Basketball National Championship team remains the only women's basketball team from the Peach Belt Conference, Southeast Region and State of Georgia to claim a national championship.
 
The 2010-11 team began of a special run for the Lakers. From 2010-2013, Clayton State went 96 and 6, posting the highest winning percentage in the nation during that time. The Lakers also posted a Peach Belt Conference record of 52 and 1 and had the second fewest losses of any NCAA women's basketball program in the nation. 
 
 
 
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