Murry’s free throws give Clayton State men 65-64 thriller at Georgia Southwestern
Greene, Robinson each score 15 points as Lakers improve to 12-8 overall and 5-5 in Peach Belt Conference

Box Score
AMERICUS, Ga. – February 3, 2010 – Playing its first road game in nearly a month, the Clayton State Laker men’s basketball team took it to the wire at in-state rival Georgia Southwestern. In the end, two free throws by Robert Murry and two big defensive stops proved to be the difference as the Lakers won a 65-64 Peach Belt Conference thriller at the Student Success Center.

The Lakers have now won three straight games, improving to 12-8 overall and an even 5-5 in the Peach Belt. Georgia Southwestern is now 5-15 overall and 1-9 in the PBC.

"I felt we were ready for a big road game. This was a big win and we needed it," said Clayton State head coach Gordon Gibbons. "I knew Georgia Southwestern would be tough, especially here at their place, but our poise down the stretch was tremendous."

In a back-and-forth game in which neither team led by double-digits, Georgia Southwestern took a 44-42 lead on a Ric Roderick 3-point basket with 11:29 remaining. The Hurricanes stretched their lead to five points on three occasions after that. Marcus Scott’s driving lay-up at the 7:28 mark gave Georgia Southwestern a 54-49 lead.

That’s when Clayton State answered with a 13-2 run. Brandon Robinson knocked down two straight 3-point baskets to give the Lakers a one-point lead. Torrin Greene followed with a dunk inside and a 3-point basket from the top of the key to give Clayton State a 62-56 lead with 4:25 remaining.

But the Hurricanes answered with an 8-1 run of their own off two Laker turnovers. Evan Mobley and Chris Rawls each connected on jump shots in the lane, and a running lay-up by Scott gave Georgia Southwestern a 64-63 lead with 1:42 remaining.

The Hurricanes had a chance to extend the lead, but Clayton State answered with a defensive stop, retaining possession with 42 seconds remaining. Murry took it to the lane and was fouled going in for a lay-up. He calmly hit both free throws with 16 seconds remaining to give the Lakers a one-point lead.

Georgia Southwestern had a final shot to win, but Mobley’s desperation 3-point basket was off as time expired.

"They (Georgia Southwestern) played very smart and did a great job controlling tempo, and what disappointed me was when we took that lead, we could not extend and then they would hit a big bucket," Gibbons said. "But those two stops in the end were huge."

Robinson and Greene each scored 15 points to pace the Lakers, each hitting three 3-point baskets. Murry scored 14 points, followed by Dobbs with 12 points. Center Armon Jones grabbed a game-high eight rebounds. For the game, Clayton State shot 49 percent from the field, 43 percent from 3-point range and out-rebounded the Hurricanes 33-22.

"Both our forwards (Dobbs and Greene) played big for us tonight," Gibbons said.

Scott led all scorers with 20 points for Georgia Southwestern, followed by Mobley with 16 points, Rawls scored 13 points and Roderick scored 11 points.

Clayton State travels next to No. 21 Georgia College in a key Peach Belt Conference showdown on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.