Patriot Women turn over #24 Lakers for 89-80 win

By Michael G. Hawkins

FLORENCE, SC — Junior guard Shana Franks scored a game-high 23 points and the Francis Marion University defense forced 39 turnovers as the Patriots beat 24th-ranked Clayton State University 89-80, Saturday afternoon (Jan. 24) to retain sole possession of first place in the Peach Belt Conference women’s standings.

Francis Marion improves to 14-1 overall, the fifth-best start in team history, and now owns a 1.5 game lead in the PBC standings with a 7-1 mark.

Franks connected on 8-of-17 shots and hit four key free throws in the final 2:04 as FMU beat its second ranked opponent in two seasons. Senior Creshenda Singletary came off the Patriot bench to score 14 points, on 6-of-9 shooting, while sophomore Shannon Singleton-Bates also had 14 points. Senior point guard Kevina Ransom tallied 11 points, eight steals, and six assists, while disrupting the Lakers’ attack on the defensive end.

Senior guard Nikkisha Pritchett led Clayton State (12-4, 6-3) with 19 points and five assists, while both Dominique Jennings and Marie St. Fort each added 16 points.

FMU converted the 39 Laker miscues into 34 points, while also owning a 44-32 advantage in points-in-the-paint and a 25-15 lead in fast-break points.

Clayton State scored the game’s first seven points and led 14-6 after a Jene’e Jemison jump shot with 15:12 left before the half. FMU answered with an 8-2 spurt to trim the margin to 16-14. The Lakers would expand their lead to 22-17 before a 16-2 run gave the Patriots the lead for good at 33-24.

The FMU lead would swell to 43-32 before the Patriots left the floor at intermission with a 43-35 lead. Franks had 13 of her points in the opening 20 minutes. The Patriots also hit on 5-of-9 three-point attempts in the opening stanza, while Clayton State was 1-of-4 from long range.

Twice early in the second half, Clayton State drew to within three points, but an 8-0 run that included five points from Singletary pushed the Francis Marion lead to 62-49 with 10:35 remaining. A minute later, a layup by Franks off a feed from Ransom gave FMU a 15-point margin (66-51).

Clayton State gradually crept back into the game, and when St. Fort drained two free throws at the 2:19 mark, the Lakers trailed only 81-76. The four free throws by Franks over the next 43 seconds helped push the lead back to 85-78 with 1:36 left on the clock.

A Laker turnover led to a layup by freshman Dominique Powell that gave Francis Marion a commanding 87-78 lead entering the final minute.

Francis Marion ended the game with a 43.1 percent shooting mark, while the Lakers shot 45.9 percent. However, the Patriots made four more three-pointers than did Clayton State, while improving their record to 34-1 over the past nine seasons when scoring 85 points or more.

The win was also FMU head coach Heather Macy’s 75th victory in a career that is only four years and 105 games old.

FMU will play host to Lander University on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.