William Carey used a late run to spoil Senior Night and hand Dalton State an 80-71 loss in the regular season finale at Mashburn Arena in Dalton on Saturday.
A very slow start from both teams saw only three field goals combined in the first four plus minutes of play. Elijah Staley broke a 4-4 deadlock with a three ball at the 14:02 mark to give the Roadrunners the lead. A trey from Malik Pugh a little over a minute later extended the lead to six points at 10-4 for Dalton State.
William Carey continued their cold streak mid-way through the first half.
With 8:51 on the clock Pugh took a Crusader turnover to the hole and finished to make the score 20-9 in favor of the Roadrunners. A three pointer from Ryan McRaney cut the lead to 20-12, but two Sean Chislom free throws got the lead back to double-digits at 22-12 with 7:36 on the clock.
Baskets were traded on the next few possessions with Dalton State continuing to hold the lead. A Kingston Frazier three ball with 5:39 remaining got the lead back to 11 points at 27-16.
The Crusaders turned up the defensive pressure and started to knock down shots the rest of the half. They ended the period out-scoring the Roadrunners 14-6, but Dalton State took a three-point lead, 33-30, into the break
Dalton State came out of the half and executing superbly on the offensive end, but so did Carey. The Roadrunners could not extend the lead but continued to hold a four-point advantage at 44-40 with 15:33 left to play.
The game went back-and-forth with each team looking to gain the momentum. The Crusaders found a spark and used a 10-0 run to take a 52-47 lead with 9:27 remaining in the contest. Dalton State answered with five-straight points of their own to tie it up at 52-52.
An exchange of field goals ensued to keep the game tied, but the Crusaders found another gear. With the game tied at 54-54, Carey mounted a 12-2 run that began with a Javontae McDavid three ball and ended with a Brandon Cranford transition basket off a turnover to give the Crusaders a 66-56 lead with 4:25 left to play.
Time was not on the Roadrunners side as they attempted to make a comeback. They cut the deficit to eight on several occasions, but were stalled at each turn with Carey making their baskets and shots from the charity stripe. Time ticked down and when the buzzer sounded, William Carey came away with the 80-71 win.
Dalton State drops to (18-12 overall, 13-9 SSAC) with the loss, while #15 William Carey (Miss.) improves to (22-8 overall, 18-4 SSAC) with the win.
Sean Cranney had 13 points, while Randy Bell added 12 points. Cranney hit his season average in assists with five, with Bell pulling down five boards.
Five Crusaders scored in double-figures with Cameron Douglas leading the way with 17 points. Brandon Cranford was silent in the first half, but finished with 13 points and four rebounds. Branden Sheppard had another double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds, while Javontae McDavid and Adrian Williams each had 10 points.
Dalton State was strong on the glass, out-rebounding William Carey 41-33. Bench points when the way of the Crusaders 28-23, but the Roadrunners held the advantage in points in the paint, 24-18, and second chance points, 9-5.
Points off turnovers went to Carey as they converted 16 points off 18 Dalton State turnovers. In contrast, the Roadrunners managed nine points off 10 Crusader turnovers. William Carey also shot better from the field at 46.7% (28-for-60), compared to 39.7% (25-for-63) for the Roadrunners.
With the regular season finished, the Roadrunners will turn their focus to the SSAC Tournament in Montgomery, Ala. The Roadrunners will find out their seed and first round opponent when play for the remaining members of the conference concludes later today. Stay tuned to dsroadrunners.com to find out game times and opponents for Dalton State.