Mega-women’s home opener – No. 21 Clayton State hosts No. 11 Delta State
Laker women, Lady Statesmen square off in early-season Division II women’s clash

MORROW, Ga. --- DECEMBER 8, 2006 --- The road has been long, but successful for the Clayton State Laker women’s basketball team. Now it’s time to come home.

After playing its first six games of the 2006-07 season on the road, Clayton State will finally play its home opener on Saturday, and it promises to be a dandy in terms of Division II national prominence. The 21^st-ranked Lakers square off against 11^th-ranked Delta State at 5:30 p.m. at the Athletics and Fitness Center.

It marks the first time ever that at Clayton State women's basketball team has entered a home game nationally-ranked and played host to a nationally-ranked opponent in the same game.

“I’m glad we’re here with a challenge that will make us better,” said Clayton State head coach Dennis Cox. “We welcome the opportunity to play good teams, and Delta State is amongst the best. We see this as an opportunity and it’s a game that will make us better regardless of whether we win or lose.”

While the winning tradition is rather new to Clayton State in last couple of seasons, Delta State has enjoyed tremendous success in women’s basketball dating back 35 years.

Before there were the likes of Tennessee, Connecticut, Georgia and Louisiana Tech (just to name a few), Delta State was the early flagship program of women’s college basketball. Led by the late Margaret Wade, the “Mother of modern women’s college basketball,” Delta State dominated the decade of the 1970s, winning three straight AIAW National Championships in 1975, 1976 and 1977.

After the NCAA instituted women’s basketball in the early 1980s, Lloyd Clark took over and made the Lady Statesmen arguably the premier program at the Division II level. Clark posted a whopping 494-98 mark in his 19 seasons at Delta State, leading the Lady Statesmen to five 30-win seasons and 11 20-win seasons. During that time, Delta State advanced to the NCAA Division II National Tournament 16 times and won the Division II National Championship in 1989, 1990 and 1992.

“My players may not remember back that far, but I remember that,” Cox said about the Lady Statesmen tradition.

Now, Sandra Rushing is in her fifth season at the Delta State helm, and appears to be carrying the torch left to her by both Wade and Clark. Last season, the Lady Statesmen finished 30-2, won the Gulf South Conference championship for the 12^th time, and advanced to the “Elite Eight” of the NCAA Division II National Tournament.

Delta State enters Saturday’s game 6-1 overall. After dropping its home opener, the Lady Statesmen have reeled off six straight victories. Unlike previous Delta State teams, this year’s Lady Statesmen squad has no real “go-to” player, as Delta State has no player averaging in double-figures scoring. Still, the Lady Statesmen are allowing only 47 points a game.

“They will be a lot like us,” Cox said about Delta State. “They play our style step-by-step; they’re very athletic and will pressure us all over the floor. It’s a case where we match up well with them, and they match up well with us.”

What Cox will be looking for against Delta State is better offensive consistency by the Lakers. In Wednesday’s 60-56 victory at in-state rival West Georgia, the Lakers committed 24 turnovers, and Cox knows that number has to decrease against Delta State.