The Clark Atlanta men (25-5) were labeled as the team to beat heading into the 2024 SIAC Basketball Tournament. They did just that on Sunday with a 65-55 win over Miles College (22-6) in the championship game.
The Panthers flirted with a twenty point lead at times during the second half but the Fred Watson led Miles team mounted a comeback to trim the lead to single digits in the final minutes.
The game started with Shemani Fuller showing that he was ready to leave his mark in Savannah For Clark Atlanta. Fuller scored six of the first nine points for CAU as the Panthers established an early 17-6 lead. Fuller finished with a team high 20 points. The reserves continued with key buckets at the midway point of the first half for that Panthers. At the 10:31 Clark Atlanta was up 20-8 after a Jalen Williams three pointer. Williams kept the CAU momentum rolling at the 5:57 mark with a layup that put the Panthers up 26-15.
A Rylen Walker jumper for Miles at the 2:28 mark pulled the Golden Bears to within four points before CAU took an eventual 33-25 lead into the break.
Within the first three minutes of the second half, Clark Atlanta pushed its lead to 42-26 after a driving Chris Martin layup. The SIAC Player of the Year finished with a balanced 13 point, five rebound, four assist effort.
The red and black attack continued with Jalen Nesmith’s pull up jumper that pushed the lead to 19 points (52-33) with 11:10 remaining.
Final surge from Miles
But Miles would respond with a 12-2 run starting at the six minute mark, fueled by Alvin Miles (24 pts) and Truitt Spencer. Spencer’s three point shot at the 1:51 mark pulled Miles to within 56-52, presenting a little doubt in the crowd at Savannah.
That’s when Chris Martin hit a signature shot, head down driving to the basket Martin put Clark Atlanta up 58-52 with 1:24 remaining. It was a stop that Miles College needed but instead it was the momentum stopper that helped quell the run. Fuller finished the game off with a windmill dunk that punctuated the ten point victory and championship.
The team with the coach of the year, player of the year and defensive player of the year wins the championship. Clark Atlanta will wait to find out their next opponent in the NCAA Division II Selection Show.
Source link : hbcugameday.com
