HARROGATE, Tenn. – No. 25 Clayton State (24-6, 19-3 PBC) battled back late in the second half and scored 20 of the game's final 30 points to earn a hard fought 75-69 victory over Carson-Newman (23-8, 14-6 SAC) in an NCAA Division II Southeast Regional men's basketball game on Saturday, March 10.

The victory equals the most wins in a season in the program's NCAA era with 24. That matches the 2006-07 team (24-8) and trails the all-time mark of 25 wins set by the 1993-94 squad (25-7).
 
Junior forward Jaylen Taylor (Hephzibah, Ga.) led five Lakers in double-figures, finishing with 13 points, eight rebounds and four assists while junior guard Justin Tuckson (Stafford, Va.) added 13 points behind the force of four three-pointers.
 
Redshirt-junior forward JaCarl Owens (Orlando, Fla.) added 10 points and six boards and senior guard Dantez Bennamon (Goose Creek, S.C.) and sophomore guard Kyle Kincey (Tallahassee, Fla.) each had 11 points to round out the top performers.
 
A pair of threes by Tuckson over the first 4:32 would help stake Clayton State to an early 12-7 lead before the Eagles answered with a 13-2 run over the next three minutes. That stretch flipped the script and gave them a 20-14 lead with 12:27 showing on the clock.
 
Trailing 26-19 at the 8:34 mark, the Lakers responded with a 9-2 burst to get right back in it, knotting things up at 28-28. Seven straight points by CNU then gave them back the lead, 35-28, before Clayton State sliced the margin to 40-35 by the half.
 
The deficit would grow to 44-37 in the first minute of the second half but wouldn't stay that way long. Fouled on a three-point attempt, redshirt-junior guard Aubrey McRae (Augusta, Ga.) knocked down three free throws and Bennamon drained a triple to fuel an 8-2 run that narrowed it to 46-45 with five minutes gone by.
 
A 9-4 stretch then put Carson-Newman up 55-49 with just under 12 to play but once again the Lakers battled back. This time that came in the form of a clutch Kincey three-pointer that ignited an 11-3 run and put them up 60-58 with 7:01 remaining.
 
A free throw and bucket by Charles Clark then gave the Eagles back the lead at 61-60 but it would be their last of the season. Three straight baskets, capped by another key one by Kincey, made it 66-61 with 4:15 on the clock.
 
A jumper by Josh Murray cut it to three just seconds later but a Tuckson triple with 3:03 left would stop that rally before it even got started. That trey keyed a game-ending 9-6 stretch that wrapped up the 75-69 NCAA Quarterfinal victory.
 
Grant Teichmann led CNU with 16 points and five rebounds while Clark finished with 14 points, five assists and four caroms in 36 minutes of action. Malik Abraham added 14 points and six boards and Shaun Jones had 13 points, five rebounds and three assists. Murray chipped in with eight points and seven boards.
 
With the victory, the Lakers return to action tomorrow, Sunday, March 11 when they take on No. 1 Lincoln Memorial (31-1) in an NCAA Southeast Region Semifinal. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. at Tex Turner Arena in Harrogate, Tennessee.
 
NOTES
Clayton State is now 4-2 all-time in the NCAA Tournament and has won at least one game in each of their three trips.