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The defeated ended a nine-game winning streak for 10th-ranked Clayton State, which is now 15-2 overall and 5-1 in the Peach Belt.
Clayton State had one of its rougher offensive outputs on the season, shooting only 35 percent from the field, including only 18 percent (4-for-22) from 3-point range. Meanwhile, UNC-Pembroke gained the early momentum by shooting 46 percent from the field in the first half, building a 31-22 lead at halftime.
The Braves took the lead for good 14-11 on a 3-point basket by Victoria Willis, and then stretched the advantage to 26-17 on another Willis 3-point basket with 4:28 remaining. Clayton State trimmed the lead to 26-22 on Crystal Brown’s 3-point basket at the 3:18 mark, but UNC-Pembroke countered with a 3-point basket by Ivy Ramsey with 1:16 remaining.
The Lakers turned up the defensive intensity early in the second half, trimming the UNC-Pembroke lead to three points in the first five minutes. Clayton State then cut the Braves’ lead to 38-33 on a jump shot by Sharon Wiles at the 9:24 mark, but UNC-Pembroke went on an 8-2 run to increase its lead to 45-35 with 6:50 remaining.
The Braves’ largest lead was 12 points, 56-44 on Willis’ breakaway lay-up with 1:40 remaining. Clayton State pulled to within six points in the final minute, but that was as close as the Lakers could get.
Shantel Ragin paced Clayton State in scoring with 14 points, while Marie St. Fort scored eight points off the bench. For the Braves (5-12, 4-3 PBC), Willis and Natasha Stotler each scored 14 points. Porcha Locklear added eight points for UNC-Pembroke. The Braves connected on seven 3-point baskets for the game and out-rebounded Clayton State 40-32.
Clayton State concludes its three-game road swing on Wednesday,
playing a 5:30 p.m. showdown at Armstrong Atlantic. |
victories, the Clayton State Laker women’s basketball team ran into
a stalemate in the form of the UNC-Pembroke Braves on Saturday as
Clayton State dropped a 59-51 Peach Belt Conference stunner at UNC-Pembroke’s
English Jones Center.