FAST START PROPELS CLAYTON STATE TO EASY WIN OVER J.C. SMITH
March 10, 2006
RALEIGH - Clayton State coach Dennis Cox wanted his team to make an
early statement and the Lady Lakers did just that in a 76-52 rout
of Johnson C. Smith Friday in a first-round NCAA Division II South
Atlantic Regional basketball game at Shaw University.
The No. 3 seed Lady Lakers pressed their way to a 32-9 lead in the
first 10 minutes and never looked back. Johnson C. Smith, seeded
No. 6, regrouped in the second half but the Lady Lakers coasted to
an easy victory. The win sends Clayton State (25-5 overall) to the
semifinals today where they will face No. 2 seed Wingate at
Spaulding Gym on Shaw's campus.
"The first 8-9 minutes were the story of the game," said Cox, whose
team dropped from No. 1 to No. 3 in the region after losing in the
Peach Belt Conference Tournament semifinals. "We came out focused.
We were smarting from our last loss. We were determined to make a
statement, catch them off-balanced."
Johnson C. Smith coach Vanessa Taylor said it was a combination of
the Lady Lakers' pressure defense and a case of the jitters which
spurred the early run. The Lady Golden Bulls (20-11) were making
their first regional appearance.
"For our program, this is a big happening," said Taylor, whose team
won the CIAA Western Division and reached tournament finals. "This
is our first time in the regionals. We took baby steps. Next year,
we will try to get better in the offseason to take it a step
further."
The Lady Lakers held the Golden Bulls to 28 percent shooting while
hitting 48 percent of their shots. Shelcey Harp and Crystal Brown
led a balanced Clayton State attack with 17 points each while
Jasmine Patterson scored 15 points. The Lady Lakers' reserves
scored 24 points.
Shemika Jones led the Lady Golden Bulls with 17 points and Tiana
Pope added 11 points. Janai Jackson contributed 10 points for
Johnson C. Smith, which couldn't overcome the huge first-half
deficit. Clayton State led 47-24 at halftime.
"We kept them off-balanced," Cox said. "We switched back-and-forth
between man and zone. We feel like we can pressure people for 40
minutes. We tried to get them to play at a pace they were not
accustomed to and it may have affected their shooting."
