Claflin basketball scores Homecoming victories
By: Jordan Geddis
Nov 21, 2015
The crowd roared as 6-8 Austin Lawton of the Claflin Panthers made a windmill dunk late in the second half to put an exclamation mark on a 78-57 win.
The Panthers remained undefeated at 3-0 on the new season by dominating the Homecoming game against the College of the Bahamas on Nov. 21 at Jonas T. Kennedy Center.
Claflin did a lot of things well:
· Forcing turnovers
· Rebounding
· Defense
· Scoring inside
· Scoring on fast breaks
A flashy pass from guard Triston Thompson got fans on their feet just before the end of a first half in which Adolph Caldwell and Trevor Dantzler led a solid shooting performance. Overall the team shot 54 percent from the field in the opening half.
The Panther defense was just as good late in the first half as Bahamas was still stuck with just seven field goals. The halftime score was 39-22.
Rebounding was a key as the Panthers allowed the visitors very few second-chance shots.
Claflin finished the game, shooting 49 percent from the field. The Panthers defense held the College of the Bahamas in check with just seven field goals in the opening period and 35 percent for the game.
Caldwell led the team with 16 points. Dantzler followed with 11, all coming in the first half. He also had three three-pointers. De’shon Nail came off the bench to score nine points and Karee Watson added eight.
Lady Panthers down Allen
Guard Dominique Williams made a three-point shot and drew the foul to get the Lady Panthers keyed up in an 87-75 Homecoming victory over Allen.
Another play that excited the crowd was forward Carnique Marks’ block, sending the ball to the first row in the crowd. Claflin alumni and current Claflin students got out their seats and cheered together on the play.
The Lady Panthers won for the third straight game, improving to 3-1 on the season.
Senior Jaquanna Davis led Claflin with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Senior Shaniece Brown had 14 points.
Williams and NaBresha Hughes contributed 13 and 12 points, respectively. Junior Jhontay Giles came off the bench to score nine points.