Charlton's Last Second Lay In Lifts Knights Over Morrisville

Release courtesy of Thomas Szarka



A lay up from Marques Charlton (Deer Park, NY) with just 2.5 seconds remaining in the second half gave the Clarkson University Men's Basketball team one of its few leads in the game, but the Golden Knights stopped a desperation 3-pointer as the clock expired to gain a 79-77 victory over Morrisville State Friday night at Alumni Gymnasium.



The Golden Knights improved to 6-1 on the season with their fifth straight victory and are off until the NYU Tournament the first few days of 2012. Morrisville fell to 3-5 overall.



From the opening tip, Morrisville's Mickey Davis was all over the court for the Mustangs, scoring in the low post, on the perimeter, and finding the open player in situations where he wasn't the go-to option on offense. The sophomore forward had 21 points and 7 rebounds in the first half, producing a 9-for-13 effort from the field with a pair of 3-pointers. Davis's play helped Morrisville take an immediate advantage as the Mustangs led throughout the first half. However, Clarkson finally removed the lid from the basket at its offensive end. The Knights struggled in the early going on free throws and shots from the field, but rallied to finish the half with a respectable 40.5% from the floor (15-for-37).



Three different players scored seven points for Clarkson in the first half, including Jerry Coleman (Potsdam, NY), who also chipped in four steals and a block in his overall play. Tyler Barron (Burlington, VT) was the most efficient, shooting 3-for-4. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Davis and Kucjok Ater combined for 33 of Morrisville's 41 first-half point production.



While it appeared as if Clarkson would climb back into the contest in the opening minutes of the second half, Davis gained the hot hand once again, hitting 3-pointers from the corner and the top of the key to give Morrisville a double-digit lead. The Mustangs advantage peaked at 15 points following a layup from Brandon Hanks at the 12:43 mark. However, over the next three minutes Clarkson ran off 13 straight points to pull back to within two as Felix Llanos (Queens, NY) tossed in his 15th-point of the half in the first 10 minutes of the second period on a 3-pointer from the top of the key. Clarkson fell back behind by seven points, but a jumper from the baseline by John Coleman (Potsdam, NY) tied things up 70-70 and just a few minutes later a pair of free throws from Coleman gave the Knights their first lead since the beginning of the contest.



Late in the game a layup from Brandon Henry gave Morrisville a 77-75 advantage, but Llanos converted his own layup at the 1:05 mark to tie the score 77-77. Some furious defense allowed Clarkson to gain possession after a pair of chances from Morrisville was denied, setting up Clarkson's final possession with 12.9 seconds to go. From there, Charlton was able to find a lane to the basket on the right side and he scooped up a tough lay in and ended on the ground on the conversion, giving Clarkson the lead that it would not relinquish.



Llanos scored a team-best 27 points for Clarkson, including 20 points in the second half as he shot 8-for-13 in the final 20 minutes. John Coleman finished with 12 points, seven rebounds and four assists, and Jerry Coleman and Charlton each ended with 11 points. For Morrisville, Davis finished with game-highs of 35 points and nine rebounds, while Ater added 14 points. Hanks also contributed a solid all-around game with 11 points, five rebounds and five assists.