By Leeroy Francis Jr. |
Sports editor
The Augusta University men’s basketball team defeated Clayton State 102-82 on Monday, Feb. 19, in a Peach Belt Conference matchup, and the Jaguars extended their winning streak to six games.
AU was led by senior Deane Williams, who captured his third-consecutive double-double, scoring a career-high 31 points for his ninth double-double of the season. Williams also pulled down 10 rebounds.
Williams asserted himself in a major way in two road wins last week for the Jaguars. The Bristol, England, product averaged 25 points and 14.5 rebounds while shooting 72 percent from the field. He opened with 24 points on 9-for-11 shooting, including 2 for 3 on three-pointers, and hauled down 10 rebounds as the Jaguars upset No. 21 UNC Pembroke 72-69 on Feb. 13. He followed that with a 9-for-14 shooting night, including eight of 10 free throws, and 19 rebounds in the 91-76 win at Georgia College Feb. 16. Williams is second in the PBC in rebounds per game and leads the conference in blocked shots.
Leading at halftime 52-40 on Monday night, Augusta further separated from the home-standing Lakers in the second half, outscoring the Lakers 50-42. Leading by as much as 23 in the final half, the Jaguars cruised to a near wire-to-wire victory in Marrow. They led for nearly 39 minutes of the game.
Junior Rafael Montiero played 31 minutes in the victory, tallying 19 points and grabbing eight rebounds. Senior Aaron Byrd played 14 minutes off the bench and made a significant impact, scoring 14 points of his own. Byrd went 4 of 5 from the field, including a perfect 2 of 2 form behind the three-point line and stole the ball a game-high three times.
Augusta (15-3 in the PBC, 19-5 overall) is a perfect 6-0 in the month of February, winner of nine of its last 10 and is 13-2 since Jan. 1. The Jaguars are now alone in second place in the Peach Belt standings, overtaking Francis Marion with the win at Clayton State. The Jaguars are now only sitting behind No. 7 USC Aiken (16-2) in the conference standings.
The Jaguars' next matchup is Wednesday, Feb. 20, against third-place Francis Marion at 7:30 p.m. in Christenberry Fieldhouse.
AU is now in the homestretch for the regular season. The important matchups for the Jaguars the next two weeks as they play for a top-two seed for the PBC Tournament is next Wednesday, Feb. 27, when Augusta will take on USC Aiken at 7:30 p.m. at the Convocation Center in Aiken, S.C.
Depending on the result of Wednesday's matchup against third-place Francis Marion, next Wednesday’s matchup could be crucial. The matchup in Aiken could ultimately determine if the Jaguars can play their way into the No. 1 seed heading into the PBC tourney March 6-10. With a loss, the Jaguars would have to settle for a two or three seed. For AU, this is shaping up to be the most anticipated PBC tourney since 2011, when the Jags defeated UNC Pembroke 76-59 in Aiken, S.C., in the final behind tourney MVP George Johnson.
The Augusta University women's basketball team also traveled to Marrow on Monday to take on the 17-7 Clayton State Lakers and ultimately fell to the Lakers 68-50.
Jaguar junior Cameryn Wilson scored double-digit points for the 10th time this season with 11 points to lead AU. Freshman Kiera Howard posted 10 points, while senior Brianna Middleton added 14 rebounds and nine points for Augusta.
Augusta, which had won 78-55 at Georgia College on Saturday, Feb. 16, behind Asia Harrison's 26 points, trailed the Lakers by 14 to the Lakers at halftime 37-23 and just couldn't find a way to close the gap in the second half. AU struggled from the three-point line (making only 3 of 21). Augusta also had 19 turnovers, and that limited the Jaguars' offensive possessions needed to build any momentum and make it close near the end.
Junior guard Madison Newby led Clayton State with 16 points, five steals, three assists and five rebounds, while senior Aleisha Merriweather, an alumna of the Academy of Richmond County, scored nine points and grabbed four rebounds in the contest.
The Jaguars (5-13 PBC, 6-18 overall) will play their final two home games of the season against Francis Marion on Wednesday, Feb. 20 at 5:30 and Saturday, Feb. 23, against Georgia Southwestern at 1:30 p.m. at Christenberry Fieldhouse. The men's contest will follow at 3:30 on Saturday.
Saturday's games are part of Homecoming Week at AU.
Contact Leeroy Francis at lfrancis@augusta.edu.