Cougars Look To Defend Home Court Against Northeastern On Thursday
1/28/2016 12:08:00 AM | Men's Basketball
COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON (12-7, 4-4 CAA) vs. NORTHEASTERN (12-9, 4-4 CAA)
Game #20
January 28, 2016 • 7:30 p.m. (ET)
TD Arena/John Kresse Court (5,100)
at Charleston, S.C.
Television: MyTV Charleston
Radio: College of Charleston Radio Network (ESPN Radio 910 AM)
Series History: Northeastern Leads 3-1
Last Meeting: Northeastern def. CofC, 65-56, on Feb. 28, 2015 in Charleston, S.C.
Internet: Free Live Statistics at www.CofCStats.com
Live Video: Free Live Video at http://portal.stretchinternet.com/charleston/
Twitter: @CofCBasketball
THE COACHES
College of Charleston: Earl Grant
Second Year at CofC: 21-31
Second Year Overall: 21-31
Northeastern: Bill Coen
10th Year at NU: 157-154
10th Year Overall: 157-154
TELEVISION (MyTV Charleston)
Play-By-Play: Jeff McCarragher
Color Analyst: John Kresse
RADIO (College of Charleston Radio Network)
Play-By-Play: Everett German
Color Analyst: Danny Johnson
GAME PREVIEW
The College of Charleston men's basketball team (12-7, 4-4 CAA) will close out the first half of Colonial Athletic Association play against Northeastern (12-9, 4-4 CAA) on Thursday, Jan. 28 at 7:30 p.m. (ET) at TD Arena. The game will be televised live locally on MyTV Charleston. Already eight games into the season and nearing the midway point of the conference race, both teams are tied for sixth in the latest league standings – only two games back of James Madison, UNCW and Hofstra – all of which are 6-2. CofC will look to defend the conference's top-leading scorer in Northeastern senior guard David Walker (18.4 ppg) and the Huskies' sixth-best scoring offense (74.6 ppg). The Cougars are riding a two-game win streak with victories over Towson (40-37) on Jan. 21 and Delaware (59-58) on Jan. 23. They currently rank No. 25 nationally in scoring defense, holding opponents to 63.8 points per game and a 31.4 percent accuracy from three-point range (No. 55). The Huskies, however, hold an edge in the all-time series having won the last three-consecutive meetings between both schools. It will be another split home-and-away week for CofC as it travels to UNCW for a Jan. 30 road matchup slated for 7 p.m. (ET) in Wilmington, N.C.
NORTHEASTERN AT-A-GLANCE
Northeastern's last three games have been decided in single digits including a triple-overtime thriller against Hofstra (L, 92-96) on Jan. 21 and a seven-point setback to Towson (L, 72-79) on Jan. 23. The Huskies are defending CAA Tournament champions and coming off their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1991. They currently lead the conference in free-throw percentage (72.3%) and rank No. 38 nationally in three-point field goals made (8.9 avg.). David Walker recorded a career-high 32 points in the team's loss to Towson without the services of second-leading scorer Quincy Ford (16.7 ppg), who did not play due to injury.
GAME PROMOTIONS
College of Charleston Athletics will celebrate and honor the 20th anniversary of the 1996 College of Charleston women's tennis team, which went 22-4 overall and won the TAAC championship title, at halftime as well as honor CofC men's soccer head coach Ralph Lundy for capturing his 300th career win at The College this past season.
SUITS AND SNEAKERS AWARENESS WEEK
Coaches and their staffs across the nation will wear sneakers with their suits during games from Jan. 25-31 to raise awareness about the fight against cancer during Suits and Sneakers Week. Specially designed 'Princess Lacey's Laces' will provide an additional opportunity to raise awareness, while honoring the late Lacey Holsworth, an 8-year-old basketball fan, and further amplifying the need to continue raising funds for pediatric cancer. The Princess Lacey's Laces promotion will extend throughout the end of the 2016 college basketball season, while supplies last. The net proceeds from the sale of the laces will be divided between Coaches vs. Cancer, who will receive 85 percent, and Princess Lacey's Legacy, who will receive 15 percent. The 85 percent CVC receives will be restricted specifically to pediatric cancer research. Laces can be purchased in any Shoe Carnival store nationwide as well as on their website at: www.shoecarnival.com/Lacey.
WATCH MYTV CHARLESTON
Local affiliate MyTV Charleston can be viewed locally over the air on Channel 36.1, on Channel 36 for DirecTV, Dish Network and AT&T U-verse subscribers as well as Channel 13 for Comcast, Knology and Time Warner cable subscribers in the Charleston, South Carolina, television market. MyTV Charleston also reaches as far as the Orangeburg, Walterboro and Georgetown areas.
COUGARS ON THE AIRWAVES
Fans can listen to all CofC men's basketball games throughout the 2015-16 season on ESPN Radio 910 AM in Charleston or via a live audio link at: www.charlestonsportsradio.com. Voice of the Cougars Everett German and color analyst Danny Johnson will call the action live from TD Arena on the College of Charleston Radio Network.
PROJECTED COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON STARTERS
#21 Marquise Pointer, G, 6-0, 205, Fr. (10.7 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 3.0 apg, 27.3 min)
#12 Cameron Johnson, G, 6-4, 196, So. (11.7 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 2.5 apg, 31.6 min)
#3 Payton Hulsey, G, 6-5, 215, Jr.-Tr. (4.6 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 3.5 apg, 26.3 min)
#5 Jarrell Brantley, F, 6-7, 245, Fr. (10.5 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 1.3 apg, 26.1 min)
#23 Nick Harris, F, 6-10, 245, RS-Fr. (4.3 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 0.4 apg, 16.8 min)
PROJECTED NORTHEASTERN STARTERS
#10 T.J. Williams, G, 6-3, 201, Jr. (5.6 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 2.6 apg, 21.8 min)
#22 Donnell Gresham Jr., G, 6-1, 195, Fr. (4.9 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 1.6 apg, 21.2 min)
#4 David Walker, G, 6-6, 196, Sr. (18.4 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 4.2 apg, 36.9 min)
#33 Zach Stahl, F/G, 6-5, 215, Sr. (11.7 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 2.1 apg, 30.6 min)
#11 Jeremy Miller, F, 6-10, 232, Fr. (7.6 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 0.3 apg, 18.9 min)
POINTER AND BRANTLEY AMONG NCAA FRESHMEN COMBO SCORING LEADERS
Not only are College of Charleston's Marquise Pointer (Jonesboro, Ark.) and Jarrell Brantley (Columbia, S.C.) two of only three freshmen to score in double figures in the CAA, the duo is averaging 21.2 points per game combined. Pointer is the team's second-leading scorer averaging 10.7 points, while Brantley is third averaging 10.5 points and shooting 50.6 percent from the field this season. Pointer and Brantley are one-of-16 top freshmen scoring duos in the country along with fellow first-year players hailing from Power 5 schools such as Florida State, LSU, Duke, Kentucky, Cal, Mississippi State, Washington and Kansas State.
NCAA DIVISION I FRESHMEN COMBO SCORING LEADERS (as of Jan. 27)
1. Malik Beasley (17.6 ppg) and Dwayne Bacon (16.0 ppg) – Florida State – 33.6 ppg
2. Tookie Brown (17.6 ppg) and Ike Smith (12.7 ppg) – Georgia Southern – 30.3 ppg
3. Marcus Evans (19.6 ppg) and Marquez Letcher-Ellis (10.3 ppg) – Rice – 29.9 ppg
4. Ben Simmons (19.8 ppg) and Antonio Blakeney (9.7 ppg) – LSU – 29.5 ppg
5. Brandon Ingram (17.1 ppg) and Luke Kennard (12.1 ppg) – Duke – 29.2 ppg
6. Jamal Murray (17.8 ppg) and Isaiah Briscoe (9.9 ppg) – Kentucky – 27.7 ppg
7. Jaylen Brown (15.0 ppg) and Ivan Rabb (12.6 ppg) – Cal – 27.6 ppg
8. Henry Ellenson (15.7 ppg) and Haanif Cheatham (11.0 ppg) – Marquette – 26.7 ppg
9. Dejounte Murray (14.7 ppg) and Marquese Chriss (11.5 ppg) – Washington – 26.2 ppg
10. Dylan Smith (13.6 ppg) and Dwayne Sutton (11.0 ppg) – UNC Asheville – 24.6 ppg
11. Malik Newman (13.4 ppg) and Quinndary Weatherspoon (10.4 ppg) – Mississippi State – 23.8 ppg
12. Andrien White (11.7 ppg) and Jon Davis (11.3 ppg) – Charlotte – 23.0 ppg
13. Marcel Pettway (11.2 ppg) and Nisre Zouzoua (10.5 ppg) – Bryant – 21.7 ppg
14. Marquise Pointer (10.7 ppg) and Jarrell Brantley (10.5 ppg) – College of Charleston – 21.2 ppg
15T. Dean Wade (10.4 ppg) and Kamau Stokes (9.9 ppg) – Kansas State – 20.3 ppg
15T. Derrick Jones Jr. (10.2 ppg) and Stephen Zimmerman Jr. (10.1 ppg) – UNLV – 20.3 ppg
SERIES HISTORY
Northeastern leads 3-1 in the all-time series with College of Charleston. Three of those four games between the Cougars and Huskies have been decided in single digits including a two-point thriller at Northeastern (69-67) on Jan. 17, 2015 at Matthews Arena in Boston, Mass. CofC is 0-2 on its home court versus Northeastern since joining the CAA in July of 2013.
LAST FOUR GAMES IN THE SERIES
L, 56-65 (-9) on Feb. 28, 2015 in Charleston, S.C.
L, 67-69 (-2) on Jan. 17, 2015 in Boston, Mass.
L, 44-60 (-16) on Feb. 15, 2014 in Charleston, S.C.
W, 58-49 (+9) on Jan. 13, 2014 in Boston, Mass.
COUGAR SIDEBARS
• College of Charleston has limited seven of its eight opponents in CAA games to 65 points-or-less and has wins already this season against preseason league favorite Hofstra (72-61) on Jan. 7 and preseason No. 2 James Madison (65-62) on Dec. 31.
• Freshman forward Jarrell Brantley has ties to the Northeast area having played one year at Notre Dame Prep School in Fitchburg, Mass. He helped the Crusaders advance to the National Prep Championships under head coach Ryan Hurd averaging 13 points and eight rebounds per game.
• The Cougars currently boast an all-time winning percentage of .694 which ranks seventh on the active NCAA Division I list behind Kentucky, North Carolina, Kansas, North Dakota State, UNLV and Duke.
DELAWARE RECAP
College of Charleston 59, Delaware 58
· With only eight scholarship players on its active roster, College of Charleston went with the starting five of freshman Marquise Pointer, sophomore Cameron Johnson, junior Payton Hulsey, freshman Jarrell Brantley and redshirt freshman Nick Harris for the sixth-consecutive ballgame (3-3).
· With the win, the Cougars claimed its first-ever win over Delaware as a third-year member of the CAA. The Blue Hens had previously won the last four-straight meetings between both schools. CofC last defeated Delaware in 2000 as members of the Southern Conference. The last six games in the seven-game series have been decided in single digits.
· CofC has now limited seven of its eight CAA opponents to 65 points-or-less holding Delaware to 58 points.
· Marquise Pointer reached double figures for the 10th time this season with a team-high 16 points against Delaware. It marked the third time to lead the Cougars in the scoring column. He also tied his career best with four three-pointers in a career-high tying 38 minutes of action.
· Cameron Johnson extended his double-digit scoring streak to four-consecutive games with 10 points against Delaware. It tied a season-and career-best streak in double figures.
· Jarrell Brantley contributed a career-high four assists along with 13 points and five rebounds versus Delaware.
· For the second time of his career, Nick Harris led the Cougars in rebounding with a team-high six boards against Delaware.
· Evan Bailey came off the bench and has now scored in double figures in three of the last four contests for the Cougars. He made three of the team's 10 three-pointers in the ballgame – the most made by CofC in a single game this season in CAA play.
· The Cougars welcomed back former men's basketball star and two-time Academic All-American Jody Lumpkin (1999-2001), who was inducted into the CofC Athletics Hall of Fame on Saturday. He was named Southern Conference Player of the Year in 2001 and led the Cougars to three-consecutive SoCon regular-season championship titles in 1999, 2000 and 2001 and a NCAA Tournament appearance in 1999. Lumpkin still ranks 18th all-time in career scoring (1,269 points), ninth all-time in career rebounding (710) and first all-time in career blocks (238).
COUGAR SOUND BITES
“Northeastern is a very good team. They are experienced and have guys who have played in the NCAA Tournament. Coach (Bill) Coen has been there for a long time and they have their system in place. They are very efficient on offense and they will test our defense for sure.” – CofC Head Coach Earl Grant on the challenge Northeastern presents on Thursday
“Our guys are high character and always battle. They never give in and believe in each other. We have to continue to make sure offensively that we stay efficient. Last week, our defense was very tough and we presented some challenges for teams. In the last four games, they all ended the same. We just did a better job in the last two minutes of the game (against Towson and Delaware). We had one-or-two more possessions where we played better basketball.” – Coach Grant on the difference of being able to win close games over the last two weeks in CAA play
“We have to make them (Northeastern) take tough shots and defend them as well as we can. We haven't been in the conference a very long time, but we've developed different rivalries with all of the teams in our conference. Northeastern has beaten us twice at home and we've gone on the road and beaten them there. It's always been an exciting matchup and close game.” – CofC Sophomore Forward Evan Bailey on the Northeastern matchup on Thursday
“There have been a lot of close games throughout the conference this year, and it's like last year, where you had four-or-five teams fighting at the top. We expect the same against Northeastern.” – Bailey on the Cougars' close games in conference play
