Cougars Travel To Delaware For CAA Clash
2/18/2016 4:46:00 AM | Men's Basketball
COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON (16-9, 8-6 CAA) vs. DELAWARE (6-19, 1-13 CAA)
Game #26
February 18, 2016 • 7:00 p.m. (ET)
Bob Carpenter Center (5,000)
at Newark, Del.
Television: None
Radio: College of Charleston Radio Network (ESPN Radio 910 AM)
Series History: Delaware Leads 4-3
Last Meeting: CofC def. Delaware, 59-58, on Jan. 23, 2016 in Charleston, S.C.
Internet: Free Live Statistics at www.BlueHenStats.com
Live Video: Free Live Video at http://portal.stretchinternet.com/delaware/
Twitter: @CofCBasketball
THE COACHES
College of Charleston: Earl Grant
Second Year at CofC: 25-33
Second Year Overall: 25-33
Delaware: Monté Ross
10th Year at UD: 131-180
10th Year Overall: 131-180
TELEVISION (None)
RADIO (College of Charleston Radio Network)
Play-By-Play: Everett German
GAME PREVIEW
With four games remaining in the regular season, every game counts as the College of Charleston men's basketball team (16-9, 8-6 CAA) travels to Delaware (6-19, 1-13 CAA) for a Colonial Athletic Association clash slated for Thursday, Feb. 18 at 7 p.m. (ET) in Newark, Del. The Cougars are looking to finish in the top half of the league and are currently in sixth place in the standings. Two of their last four contests will be against the current No. 1 (UNCW) and No. 2 (Hofstra) teams. Freshman forward Jarrell Brantley (Columbia, S.C.) is the reigning CAA Rookie of the Week and is on a career-best seven-game double-figure scoring streak leading the Cougars with a game-high 20 points in a 66-62 road victory at Elon on Feb. 13. Defensively, CofC ranks No. 11 in the nation in scoring defense holding opponents to 61.6 points per game. The Cougars will look to claim their first-ever regular-season sweep in the all-time series with Delaware since joining the league in July of 2013. They have won six of their last eight conference games, but have yet to win on the road on the Blue Hens' home court in two previous tries.
A LOOK AT THE BLUE HENS
Delaware captured its first conference victory this season against Drexel (69-60) on Feb. 11. The Blue Hens have four players who are averaging double figures in the scoring column including sophomore guard Kory Holden – the CAA's third-leading scorer averaging 17.8 points per game. Senior forward Marvin King-Davis currently ranks No. 40 nationally in rebounds per game (9.2 rpg) and No. 32 in double-doubles (11).
COACHES POWERING FORWARD FOR AUTISM
Head coach Earl Grant and his staff will participate in the Third Annual Coaches Powering Forward for Autism benefitting Autism Speaks from Feb. 19-21. More than 250 coaches and their staffs will wear lapel pins to raise awareness for the autism community. For more information, visit: www.AutismSpeaks.org.
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 will call the action live from the Bob Carpenter Center on the College of Charleston Radio Network.
PROJECTED COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON STARTERS
#21 Marquise Pointer, G, 6-0, 205, Fr. (11.3 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 3.0 apg, 29.2 min)
#12 Cameron Johnson, G, 6-4, 196, So. (11.9 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 2.4 apg, 32.1 min)
#3 Payton Hulsey, G, 6-5, 215, Jr.-Tr. (4.6 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 3.4 apg, 27.7 min)
#5 Jarrell Brantley, F, 6-7, 245, Fr. (11.3 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 1.4 apg, 27.4 min)
#23 Nick Harris, F, 6-10, 245, RS-Fr. (4.9 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 0.3 apg, 19.5 min)
PROJECTED DELAWARE STARTERS
#1 Kory Holden, G, 6-2, 180, So. (17.8 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 4.1 apg, 36.3 min)
#3 Anthony Mosley, G, 6-1, 180, So. (10.2 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 2.3 apg, 31.7 min)
#22 Cazmon Hayes, G, 6-4, 195, Jr. (12.2 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 1.3 apg, 35.2 min)
#11 Devonne Pinkard, F, 6-6, 200, Jr. (6.5 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 0.8 apg, 26.9 min)
#21 Marvin King-Davis, F, 6-7, 230, RS-Sr. (14.4 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 1.0 apg, 32.0 min)
SERIES HISTORY
Delaware leads 4-3 in the all-time series with College of Charleston. Six of the seven all-time meetings between the two programs have been decided by six points-or-less with the exception of an 80-55 rout of the Blue Hens in the championship game of the CofC Classic on Dec. 22, 1998.
LAST SEVEN GAMES IN THE SERIES
W, 59-58 (+1) on Jan. 23, 2016 in Charleston, S.C.
L, 68-71 (-3) on Jan. 31, 2015 in Newark, Del.
L, 58-64 (-6) on Jan. 10, 2015 in Charleston, S.C.
L, 86-89 (-3) on March 1, 2014 in Charleston, S.C.
L, 64-67 (-3) on Feb. 5, 2014 in Newark, Del.
W, 80-75 (+5) on Dec. 21, 2000 in Charleston, S.C.
W, 80-55 (+25) on Dec. 22, 1998 in Charleston, S.C.
COUGARS AMONG MOST IMPROVED IN NCAA DIVISION I (as of Feb. 14)
College of Charleston currently boasts a 16-9 overall record and is one of the Top 10 most-improved programs in NCAA Division I this season under second-year head coach Earl Grant through games played as of Feb. 14. The Cougars are tied for the fourth-best improvement in the country next to Saint Joseph's and Southern Illinois.
School 2015-16 2014-15
W L W L Improvement
1. Tennessee State 18 7 5 26 16.0
2. Arkansas-Little Rock 22 3 13 18 12.0
3. Ball State 16 9 7 23 11.5
4T. College of Charleston 16 9 9 24 11.0
4T. Saint Joseph's 21 4 13 18 11.0
4T. Southern Illinois 20 7 12 21 11.0
7. Fairfield 14 11 7 24 10.0
8T. Alcorn 11 12 6 26 9.5
8T. Nevada 15 9 9 22 9.5
8T. Southern California 18 7 12 20 9.5
COUGAR SIDEBARS
• College of Charleston is 3-3 on the road this season in conference play. The Cougars claimed their first-ever road wins as members of the CAA at James Madison (65-62) on Dec. 31 and at Towson (40-37) on Jan. 21. They have yet to win on the road at Drexel, William & Mary, UNCW, Delaware and Hofstra.
• Both Colonial schools were founded in the 1700s – 1770 for CofC (13th oldest) and 1743 for Delaware (one of the 20th oldest in the U.S.).
• The 2015-16 school year marks the College of Charleston athletics department's 25th anniversary as a NCAA Division I member. The men's basketball program boasts a 532-235 (.694) all-time record since the inaugural 1991-92 season. The Cougars' winning percentage currently ranks seventh on the active NCAA Division I list behind Kentucky, North Carolina, Kansas, North Dakota State, UNLV and Duke.
ELON RECAP
College of Charleston 66, Elon 62
· 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 (7-5).
· With the road win, CofC split the regular-season series with Elon. The Cougars now lay claim to a 16-6 advantage in the all-time series versus the Phoenix.
· The Cougars shot 53.1 percent (26-of-49) from the field at Elon which was their second-highest shooting percentage in a conference game this season behind 54.7 percent versus Hofstra on Jan. 7.
· Jarrell Brantley recorded his second career 20-point game with a game-high 20 points on 8-of-13 shooting at Elon. He was one rebound shy of a double-double with a game-high nine rebounds. Brantley extended his career-best double-digit scoring streak to seven consecutive games.
· Cameron Johnson turned in his 18th game of the season in double figures with 15 points at Elon. His first 14 points of the game came by way of perfection from the field (5-for-5), beyond the arc (2-for-2) and the charity stripe (2-for-2).
· Payton Hulsey reached double figures for the fifth time this season with 10 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the floor at Elon. He also added four rebounds and one steal in the road win.
· The CofC defense has now limited conference foes to 65 points or less in 11-of-13 contests including Elon (62 points).
COUGAR SOUND BITES
“You have to have a certain mental toughness on the road and we have to focus on doing the things we do well on Thursday. Certainly, Delaware has talented players and are capable of scoring. It's another CAA game where it's going to be a challenge. There are many nights where you have to play well in this league. They (Delaware) have come up close in several games this season. It's definitely going to be a game where we have to play well. We have to defend and rebound. We have to attack their zone, because they play a 2-3 zone.” – CofC Head Coach Earl Grant on defending Delaware
“Jarrell (Brantley) had a really good week. He had a good balance to his game. He got some offensive rebounds and steals for points (at Elon). I'm happy that he is learning to let everything come through the system and he's just letting it happen for him.” – Coach Grant on CAA Rookie of the Week Jarrell Brantley's play
“We had good balance between getting threes and transition baskets. We got some paint touches and made high-percentage shots. It was one of the games where we had our best balance. Everything wasn't perimeter oriented – why we shot 53 percent.” – Coach Grant on the team's offense at Elon
“Coach (Grant) says take it one game at a time. We don't look at the overall record. We know we are playing well in this league. Everyone on this team started the season with high hopes and we are planning on finishing in the top half of the league. We are playing well and know we are good enough to do so. We may have lost some of our core group of guys, but other people have stepped up. Jarrell Brantley is playing great basketball right now. Cam Johnson is shooting the ball well and Evan Bailey is coming off the bench and playing well. Nick Harris is playing well as a redshirt freshman. Other guys have stepped up every game to fill those gaps. I'm not really into stats, but when you see how many guys we have on the roster right now, we are still ranked No. 11 in the nation in points allowed. That just shows that if we have our scorers gone, we can still step-up and win big games with our defense. ” – CofC Graduate Senior Forward James Bourne on finishing off the season strong and how the team has dealt with injuries
