Morrow, GA---The Clayton State Men's Basketball team fell in its final game of the Clayton State Classic to Catawba College 96-77.

From the tip-off, the pace was high as both teams brought energy right from the start. The Indians saw the games first buckets but the early lead did not stop the Lakers from playing aggressive. DJ Wright got the scoring going for the Lakers and was electric from the field in the first half going 6-7 with 4 of those 6 made shots coming from behind the 3-point line. Jeremiah Barze and Jojo Bell both showed aggression in the paint with each grabbing 4 rebounds. Back and forth both teams were able to get shots to go in and going into the half the game was close but it was the Indians with a 10 point lead as the first half ended.

Halftime: Catawba 47, Clayton State 37

In the second half, the Lakers got the scoring going by a big 3 pointer from Wright followed by a tough layup by Andre Young. After the two good field goals by the Lakers, it was the turnovers that caused the Indians to gain a lead. Although the lead continued to grow, the Lakers never gave up. The Lakers were still able to move the ball to find open men for 3-point shots and layups in the paint. With the shots going in for the Lakers, the Indians were still able to hold onto the lead which resulted in a final score of 96-77.

Quick Hits

• DJ Wright led the Lakers with 24 points
• Also in double digits scoring was Andre Young with 18 points,  Joey Thomas and Jeremiah Barze both with 11 points
• Jojo Bell led the Lakers in rebounds with 9, 5 of them coming on defense
•  The Lakers finished with 28 total rebounds as a team and also shot 73% from the free throw line

Whats Next?
The Lakers travel to Fairfield, AL with a matchup against Miles College on Tuesday, November 25. Tip off is at 7pm (ET).
 
Be sure to follow Clayton State Athletics on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.