MORROW, Ga. – For the first time since the 2007-08 season, Clayton State (16-12, 11-8 PBC) is Peach Belt Conference Champions after claiming the West Division title with a nail biting 71-70 victory over Montevallo (17-9, 11-8) in an NCAA Division II men's basketball game on Wednesday, February 22.
 
In a game that, had they lost it, would have ended their season, the Lakers rallied multiple times in the second half and delivered clutch performances to seal their first regular season championship of any kind since winning the 2001-02 PBC Regular Season title. Their only other league championship at the Division II level came when they won four straight games to win the 2008 PBC Tournament as a sub-.500 club.
 
Tied at 63-63 with 3:39 to play, UM's Micah Fuller knocked down a jumper to give them a two point lead before Clayton State responded by splitting two free throws to cut it to one. With 2:12 on the clock, they would force a turnover and draw a foul to send graduate forward Jaumonee Byrd (Douglasville, Ga.) to the line.
 
He led the team all year in free throw percentage and came through in the clutch this time, knocking down both for a 66-65 lead. Following misses by both teams, the Falcons' Javonte Douglas drove to the hole to flip the script at 67-66 at the 1:09 mark. Facing a never ending assault where every time they scored, Montevallo came right back at the other end, junior guard Dantez Bennamon (Goose Creek, S.C.) took matters into his own hands.
 
With 42 seconds left he pulled up beyond the arc and sank the go-ahead three-pointer for a 69-67 lead, but once again it would be Douglas, this time draining a jumper to tie it with 22 seconds on the clock. At that point, UM made what turned out to be a critical mistake as they deliberately fouled freshman guard Kyle Kincey (Tallahassee, Fla.), who had struggled at the line.
 
With 18 seconds staring down from the board, and the opportunity to put his team back ahead in a win-or-go-home situation, Kincey did just that as he sank both shots for a 71-69 lead. The Falcons then worked the clock down at the other end and drew a foul with three seconds left. Tazz Marbury would go to the line with a chance to tie it. He knocked down the first one but saw the second clang off the rim – right into the waiting hands of Byrd, who was immediately fouled.
 
He would miss the first, and in a twist of irony for Montevallo, the second as well. Instead of having a chance to tie or win with a heave, they could do nothing but watch the clock run out on their dreams of a division title – a dream that came true for the Lakers as the ball found its way into the hands of Bennamon to lock up the incredible 71-70 victory.
 
Bennamon dropped 22 points on the night with five rebounds while redshirt-senior forward Alfonso Davis (Bronx, N.Y.) finished with 11 points, seven boards and three blocks while dealing with foul trouble. Byrd added 10 points and five caroms and sophomore forward Jaylen Taylor (Hephzibah, Ga.) ripped down seven boards, one shy of his career-high. Kincey may have had only seven points, but he delivered two of the biggest on the night to be sure.
 
In the first half, the teams deadlocked three times and saw five lead changes but neither could take full control as the margin never got past four points for either team. Clayton State took a 15-11 lead at the 12:39 mark only to see UM surge back with a 9-2 run to flip it and pull ahead 20-17 more than four minutes later. They would then hold onto that lead the rest of the half and took a 33-31 margin into the break.
 
It would be a constant back-and-forth in the second half as the Lakers had three fleeting one point leads and deadlocked nine times through the first 16:21. That would see the teams squared off at 63-63 and set the stage for a finish for the ages.
 
Douglas was at the top of the ledger again for UM, finishing with 21 points and 12 rebounds but didn't take even one three-pointer after decimating the Lakers earlier in the season from beyond the arc. He was joined by Kevin Kelly with 12 points, five assists and a pair of steals and by Talan Whitaker with 19 points.
 
As a team, the Falcons shot a withering .558 from the field but could not capitalize when they needed it most. Meanwhile, Clayton State won the turnover battle, committing only eight and forcing 15. Their total was the second lowest of the year behind seven against Flagler and Columbus State.
 
The Lakers earned the title as the top team out of a rare five-way tie in the West Division. Columbus State takes the No. 2 Seed, followed by North Georgia and Montevallo at the No. 3 and No. 4 spots, respectively. Young Harris is the odd man out despite finishing with the same 11-8 record.
 
Ties were broken by comparing team's records against the other teams in the tie until a top team emerged. Following that team being seeded, the remaining teams then returned to that process to seed the rest of the field.
 
Clayton State has earned the right to host No. 4E Seed Lander on Saturday, February 25. The Bearcats finished at 11-17 overall and 8-11 in the East Division. This season the Lakers picked up an 89-80 victory in Greenwood, South Carolina on January 4.
 
Returning to the PBC Tournament for the first time since the 2012-13 season, game time for the men's quarterfinal is set for approximately 5:30 p.m. That will follow the women's quarterfinal vs. UNC Pembroke at The Loch.
 
NOTES
With the win, this is Clayton State Athletics first team championship since women's basketball won the 2013-14 Peach Belt Conference Championship … it is men's basketball's fourth overall title … along with the 2008 PBC Tournament Championship and 2001-02 PBC Regular Season, they also won the Georgia Athletic Conference Regular Season in 1993-94 and 1994-95 when the program was still in the NAIA ranks … prior to the game the Lakers recognized five seniors, Jaumonee Byrd, Mike Scott, Maurice White, Alfonso Davis and Darrius Moore.