TULLAHOMA, TN -- Walters State led for much of the game on Wednesday night and then held on late, taking down Motlow State 65-62 for a huge TCCAA win.
With the win, Walters State improves to 10-4 on the season and 9-4 in conference play. The Senators are now tied in the loss column with Motlow State and Cleveland State for first place. It was the third win in-a-row for Walters State.
The Senators were led in the game by Kajuan Hale who had 16 points. With Walters State holding a one-point lead with five seconds left, Hale stepped to the line and drilled two free throws to seal the win.
Along with Hale, De'Marius Boyd had 14 points while Tylar Haynes had 12 points and eight rebounds. Destin Barker added eight points and 15 rebounds. Haynes and Barker played the entire 40 minutes on Wednesday night.
As a team, Walters State shot 24-57 from the field, good for 42.1%. The Senators held a 38-25 rebound edge and had 15 assists.
Things started quickly for Walters State as they built up a 4-0 lead on a Barker layup and Haynes made jumper. The lead extended quickly after when Hale drilled a 3-pointer.
Motlow State would respond and tie the game but a 6-0 run put Walters State ahead once again. Motlow would then take their first lead of the game before Barker hit a 3-pointer to tie it at 16.
From there, both teams exchanged the lead multiple times before Boyd hit two free throws and then made a jumper to put them up five. The Senators would get that lead to 10 thanks to a run from Deovaunta Williams and Boyd with a minute to go. Walters State led by seven at the half.
In the second half, while Motlow tried to fight back, the Senators kept a hold on their lead after Barker and Hale both hit 3-pointers when it was 51-49.
Both teams would then go back and forth and the lead was 63-60 with two minutes to go. With 10 seconds to go, Motlow hit a jumper to cut the lead to one. However, Hale calmly sank his free throws and the Senators held on.
UP NEXT:
Walters State will be back in action on Saturday, travelling to take on Cleveland State for a huge TCCAA matchup. Tip is set for 4 p.m.
Rob Harvey
Walters State Community College
Sports Information Director
Cell: (423) 779-8880
Email: sportsinfo@ws.edu
Website: www.ws.edu/athletics