College of Charleston
Georgia Southern
CofC Downs GSU in SoCon Opener, 68-59
12/3/2009 9:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Andrew Goudelock (Lilburn, Ga.) scored a game-high 19 points and Jeremy Simmons posted a double-double with 10 points and a career-high 13 rebounds leading College of Charleston to a 68-59 win over Georgia Southern in the Southern Conference opener for both schools before 2,764 at Carolina First Arena on Thursday.
The Cougars improved to 2-3 on the season, while the Eagles fell to 3-5. Both teams play league games on Saturday. Charleston plays host to Davidson at 4 p.m. Georgia Southern plays at The Citadel at 3 p.m.
Georgia Southern used a 10-0 run to close the first half, including the final five points from Ben Drayton, to take a 28-25 lead at intermission. The Eagles stretched their run to 14-0 earlier in the second half and took a 32-25 advantage with 18:29 left.
Goudelock's 3-pointer with 11:34 left capped a 16-8 Charleston run that gave the Cougars a 41-40 lead. The game, which was tied nine times and saw 11 lead changes, stayed tight throughout.
The Cougars took the lead for good at 55-54 on a pair of free throws by Goudelock with 5:02 left. Goudelock sparked a 9-0 Charleston run that gave the Cougars a 62-54 cushion with just 2:58 left.
For the game, the Cougars shot 50.0 percent from the floor, including 66.7 percent in the second half connecting on 14-of-21 attempts. Charleston shot 53.3 percent from 3-point territory after the break (8-15). The Eagles were limited to just 37.3 percent from the floor for the game but forced Charleston into a season-high 23 turnovers.
The Cougars, who held a 37-34 edge in rebounding, also had 11 blocks. The most by a Charleston team since recording 15 blocks against East Tennessee State on Jan. 3, 2000.
Donavan Monroe (Waxhaw, N.C.) added 16 points, while freshman Willis Hall (Charlotte, N.C.) chipped in 12 off the bench for Charleston. The Eagles got a team-high 15 points from Drayton and 13 off the bench from Willie Powers.
