Claflin Faces Fort Valley State in SIAC Tournament

Birmingham, Ala. (Claflin) — The Claflin University men’s basketball team will begin its quest toward its first-ever Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) Championship Wednesday (March 1) when they face Fort Valley State in the quarterfinal of the SIAC Basketball Championships.

The Championships are being held at the Bill Harris Arena inside the Birmingham Complex in Birmingham, Ala.

Claflin and Lane College are the tournament’s top-seeded teams on the East and West, respectively, and received first round byes.

Lane claimed the West Division title outright, while Claflin shared the East along with Benedict College and Clark Atlanta University. All three teams finished the regular season at 12-5 in the division.

The Panthers claimed the divisional No. 1 seed by virtue of the league’s tie-breaker.

For the accomplishment, Claflin Coach Ricky Jackson was selected the conference coach of the year.

“It’s an honor,” Jackson said. “I am very appreciative of my colleagues for recognizing my coaches, players and our student body with the Coach of the Year Award.
The award was made possible through our coaches and players commitment to the program and the support of the Claflin University family.”

Jackson hopes the success will continue, especially in the conference tournament against the Wildcats. Fort Valley State (No. 5 East) gained an opportunity to face the Panthers with a 79-73 win over Kentucky State University in Monday’s opening round.

The Claflin/Fort Valley State matchup is set for 3:15 p.m. (CST). The Panthers will bring a 17-9 record into the contest, while the Wildcats are 9-17.

The two teams met just once during the regular season with Fort Valley State pulling out a 71-70 win at home. Jalen Crawford scored the game winning basket for the Wildcats with five seconds in the game.

The victory snapped a seven-game winning streak by Claflin.

The Panthers will be led into battle by all-conference performer Ryan McNeill-Moses. The senior forward leads the team in scoring at 12.8 points and rebounds with six per game.

Red-shirt sophomore Austin Lawton is averaging 10.7 points for the Panthers and a conference leading 62 blocked shots. Last season, Lawton posted 81 blocks.

Junior shooting guard Benjamin Williams is averaging just under double-figures at 9.0 points, followed by sophomore point guard Triston Thompson at 8.8 points and 3.4 assists per game.

Senior Trevor Dantzler is the Panthers offensive weapon from outside with 50 three-pointers on the season.

Crawford leads the Wildcats in scoring at 12.1 points, followed by James Barnes at with 11.2 points.

The tournament will conclude on Saturday with the championship game at 7 p.m. (CST)

Notes:
Last season, Claflin was one point away from playing for the tournament championship. The Panthers fell to Lemoyne-Owen 71-70 in the semifinals.

Coach Jackson is 3-3 in SIAC tournament games.

Lawton has led the SIAC in blocked shots the past two seasons. He collected 62 this season, giving him a career total of 143. He posted a career-best of seven blocks against Central State University (Nov. 29) and Lane College (Dec. 3).

McNeill-Moses has led the Panthers in scoring 10 of the 26 games this season. He poured in a career-high 35 points against Kentucky State (Dec.1.)

Dantzler hit career-high seven three-pointers against Saint Augustine’s (Nov. 21)
Thompson had a career-high in assist, dishing out 11 against Morehouse College (Feb. 6).