Box Score MORROW, GA. – Senior guard Brandon Robinson scored 23 points and grabbed a career-high 16 rebounds to lead Clayton State University to a hard-fought 70-60 win over Francis Marion University, Saturday afternoon (Feb. 12) in Peach Belt Conference men's basketball action.
Freshman guard Evrik Gary paced FMU with 17 points and seven rebounds, while senior swingman Dominique Coleman scored 14 points off the bench and Liki Turner added 11 points.
The Patriots fall to 14-8 overall and 7-7 in the Peach Belt with their third loss in the last four outings. FMU will play at Lander University on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.
Robinson's backcourt mate Timmy Downs also scored 23 points for Clayton State (17-7, 8-5), while handing out five assists and recording five steals.
Clayton State jumped out to a quick 14-5 lead, and the Lakers later led 25-20 following a three-point basket by Robinson. Francis Marion responded with a 9-0 run, highlighted by three-pointers from Coleman and Gray, to give the Patriots a 29-25 lead at the 5:35 mark.
A driving lay-up by Julious Bryant stretched the Francis Marion lead to five points in the final two minutes of the half. However, Downs came up with a steal at mid-court in the waning seconds and drained a three-point basket as time expired that tied the game 35-35 at halftime.
Slowly, Clayton State pulled away in the second half using an effective two-three zone. Robinson scored twice on lay-ups to give the Lakers a 49-42 lead with 13:55 remaining. Downs gave Clayton State a 53-45 advantage at the 11:41 mark on a jumper, but Francis Marion roared back with a 7-0 run. Turner's jumper in the lane cut the Laker lead to 53-52 with 9:24 remaining.
But that was as close as the Patriots would get. Robinson responded with a jumper in the lane, followed by a three-pointer by Downs. Another jumper by Downs stretched the Laker lead to 64-58 with 1:18 remaining.
A layup by FMU senior David Turner trimmed the margin to 64-60 with 45 seconds left, but Clayton State scored the game's final six points as FMU missed its last four shots.
After the Patriots shot 43.8 percent in the first half, Clayton State limited FMU to only 21.9 percent over the final 20 minutes, including just 2-of-16 shooting from beyond the three-point arc.
2-12-11 3:30 p.m. at Morrow, Ga. (Athletics & Fitness Center)
CLAYTON STATE 70, FRANCIS MARION 60
FRANCIS MARION (14-8, 7-7 PBC)
Gary, Evrik 6-13 2-2 17; Coleman, Dominique 5-14 1-2 14; Turner, Liki 4-11
3-4 11; Turner, David 2-6 2-2 6; Julious, Bryant 2-8 0-0 4; Boyd, Simel 2-7
0-0 4; Smith, Andrew 0-1 3-4 3; Greenfield, Shawn 0-4 1-2 1. Totals 21-64
12-16 60.
CLAYTON STATE (17-7, 8-5 PBC)
Downs, Timmy 8-21 4-4 23; Robinson, Brandon 8-21 6-6 23; Bradley, Zach 1-1
5-6 7; Dobbs, Juron 3-5 0-2 6; Thorogood, Michael 2-5 2-5 6; Greene, Torrin
1-6 0-0 3; Waldon, James 1-1 0-0 2; Walker, Willie 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 24-60
17-23 70.
Halftime: 35-35
3-point goals--Francis Marion 6-29 (Gary, Evrik 3-10; Coleman, Dominique
3-8; Turner, David 0-2; Julious, Bryant 0-5; Greenfield, Shawn 0-3; Turner,
Liki 0-1), Clayton State 5-22 (Downs, Timmy 3-10; Robinson, Brandon 1-8;
Greene, Torrin 1-4). Fouled out--Francis Marion-None, Clayton State-None.
Rebounds--Francis Marion 39 (Boyd, Simel 7; Gary, Evrik 7), Clayton State 46
(Robinson, Brandon 16). Assists--Francis Marion 13 (Julious, Bryant 4),
Clayton State 12 (Downs, Timmy 5). Total fouls--Francis Marion 17, Clayton
State 14. Technical fouls--None. A-604
