Clayton State men outlast Lander 68-64 in overtime on "Senior Night"
Sloan scores 18 points as Lakers improve to 13-12 and an even 9-9 in the Peach Belt Conference

MORROW, Ga. – February 23, 2008 – It needed an extra session to finish the job, but the Clayton State Laker men’s basketball team would not be denied on "Senior Night" on Saturday.

Behind 18 points from senior guard Michael Sloan, the Lakers out-lasted visiting Lander 68-64 in overtime at the Athletics and Fitness Center in Peach Belt Conference action. Clayton State, winners of three of its last four games and eight of its last nine against Lander, improves to 13-12 overall and 9-9 in the Peach Belt.

After trailing the entire first half and early in the second half, Clayton State took its first lead of the game, 34-32 on a long 3-point basket by Will Lewis at the 13:49 mark. The Lakers four times extended the lead to four points, including 43-39 on an alley-oop dunk by Ricky Garrett off an assist by Tracy Williams with 9:27 remaining.

Lander briefly re-took the lead on a steal and lay-up by Zach Evans with 5:17 remaining, but the Lakers regained the lead on a jump shot in the lane by Brian Kelly with 4:47 remaining. A tip-in by Kelly at the 2:27 mark increased the Clayton State lead to 50-47.

Ahead 50-49, Clayton State had a chance to ice it in the waning seconds, but Sloan converted on one of his two free throws with 23 seconds remaining. Evans then tied the game 51-51 with three seconds remaining on a 16-foot jump shot to send the game into overtime.

Evans gave Lander the early lead with two straight driving lay-ups. However, Clayton State took the lead for good on a 3-point basket by Bernard Fields with 3:15 remaining. That triggered an 11-0 Laker run as Sloan scored on an alley-oop dunk and then converted four straight free throws to give Clayton State a 64-55 lead with 42 seconds remaining.

Evans kept the Bearcats alive with two straight 3-point baskets to trim the Laker lead to 66-64 with five seconds remaining. But Sloan hit two free throws with four seconds remaining to seal it for Clayton State.

In addition to Sloan, Fields scored 15 points off the bench for Clayton State, while Kelly recorded a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Defensively, Clayton State held Lander to only 32 percent shooting from the field and only 21 percent (8-for-38) shooting from 3-point range.

For Lander (9-16, 6-12), Evans scored 24 points, followed by Houston Wright with 10 points.

Clayton State hits the road for a big Peach Belt Conference showdown at fifth-ranked USC-Aiken on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.