Cold Shooting Night Dooms Marauders in Home Loss to Clark Atlanta, 71–47
WILBERFORCE, OH — Despite a competitive start and multiple early ties, Central State (1–8, 0–7 SIAC) fell to Clark Atlanta University on Thursday evening, 71–47, inside Beacom–Lewis Gymnasium. A dominant third quarter by the Panthers proved to be the turning point as CAU pulled away behind an explosive offensive performance from Atreonia Garner.
Garner was nearly unstoppable, finishing with 30 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals, shooting 12-of-21 from the field. Her ability to score in transition and consistently get to the line set the tone for Clark Atlanta, who improved to 4–6 overall and 4–3 in SIAC play.
FIRST HALF – DEFENSIVE BATTLE
Both teams traded early baskets, with CSU showing strong effort on the boards and in the paint.
Central State held CAU to just 12.5% shooting in the second quarter, but turnovers prevented the Marauders from capitalizing fully. Despite the defensive resilience, CSU trailed 25–22 at the half.
DeZarae' Stewart energized the Marauders early, attacking the rim and finishing with 12 points on the night.
THIRD QUARTER – CAU TAKES CONTROL
Clark Atlanta completely flipped the game after halftime, putting together a dominant 24–11 third quarter sparked by transition opportunities and second-chance points.
CAU shot an incredible 72.7% in the third, while Central State went ice cold, hitting just 5-of-19 attempts. That swing quickly turned a tight defensive contest into a double-digit deficit the Marauders couldn't recover from.
FOURTH QUARTER – FIGHT TO THE FINISH
CSU continued to battle, with Brie'anah Hill providing interior strength and finishing with 4 points and 9 rebounds, and several players contributing on the boards as the Marauders outrebounded CAU 45–41 overall.
But Clark Atlanta's tempo, bench depth, and ability to score off turnovers (26 CAU points off CSU giveaways) kept the gap out of reach.
MARAUDER LEADERS
TEAM NOTES
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Rebounds: CSU 45, CAU 41
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Points in the Paint: CSU 38
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Fast Break Points: CSU 16
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Turnovers: CSU 27
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Three-Point Shooting: 0-for-9
Despite the loss, the Marauders showed interior presence and stretches of strong defense but were undone by turnovers and shooting struggles.
