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three-game winning streak come to a halt on Saturday night as the
visiting North Alabama Lions came into the Athletics and Fitness
Center and took an 83-66 victory over the Lakers. The defeat evens
Clayton State at 4-4 overall.
The Lakers came into the game with strong momentum following last Saturday’s nine-point victory at West Georgia, while North Alabama was reeling from a two-game losing skid. But the Lions shot 47 percent from the field in both halves and were an impressive 19-for-20 from the free throw line. In addition, North Alabama hurt Clayton State inside with 20 second-chance points. The first half was a good example of see-saw as there were seven ties and six lead-changes. North Alabama twice had an eight-point lead, and then built the lead to nine points, 29-20 on Casey Holt’s 3-point basket with 8:18 remaining. However, Clayton State responded with a 10-0 run as Michael Sloan drained a 3-point basket and his 3-point play at the 5:39 mark gave the Lakers a 30-29 lead. Clayton State stretched the lead to four points, only to have the Lions tie the game at 37-37 on two lay-ups by Phil Collins and Andrew Chesney. The Lakers took a 38-37 lead at halftime as Tracy Williams drained a free throw with 29 seconds remaining. There were five ties and five lead changes early in the second half before North Alabama took control. Chesney scored inside to give the Lions the lead for good, 53-51 with 12 minutes remaining. Isaac Gay then followed with two straight 3-point baskets to stretch the North Alabama lead to 59-52 with 10:30 remaining. Clayton State never got closer than four points after that. After the Lakers trimmed the lead to 72-64 on a Williams 3-point basket, North Alabama responded was Chesney scored a lay-up off a missed jump shot, and point guard Kenny Johnson scored a fastbreak layup off a Clayton State turnover. In the final two minutes of the game, Johnson was 7-for-8 from the free throw line. Sloan paced Clayton State with 11 points, while senior Armel Traore Dit Nignan scored 10 points with eight rebounds. Jerome Boyd and Bernard Fields both added nine points off the bench for the Lakers. For North Alabama (8-4), Johnson scored 25 points on 10-for-11 shooting from the free throw line, followed by Gay with 21 points on 8-for-12 shooting from the field. Center Thomas Fraise scored 13 points, while Chesney and Holt both added 11 points for the Lions. Clayton State is off for the holiday break. The Lakers return to action on Dec. 28, playing host to St. Augustine’s in the Heritage Bank Holiday Classic at the Athletics and Fitness Center.
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