Cougars To Tangle With Tigers In CAA Home Opener

Thursday, January 5

TD Arena

7:30 PM

College of Charleston

Towson

Tickets

Photo by: Al Samuels

1/4/2017 7:20:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Towson Game Notes

COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON (11-4, 2-0 CAA) vs. TOWSON (8-7, 0-2 CAA)
Game #16
January 5, 2017 • 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: Towson Leads 5-4
Last Meeting: CofC def. Towson, 65-47, on Feb. 4, 2016 in Charleston, S.C.
Internet: Free Live Statistics at www.CofCStats.com
Live Video: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/charleston/
Twitter: @CofCBasketball

THE COACHES
College of Charleston: Earl Grant
Third Year at CofC: 37-42
Third Year Overall: 37-42
Towson: Pat Skerry
Sixth Year at Towson: 84-94
Eighth Year Overall: 108-119

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 (11-4, 2-0 CAA) returns to the friendly confines of TD Arena for a five-game homestand over the next six of its Colonial Athletic Association games. The Cougars are winners of their last eight of nine contests and will host Towson (8-7, 0-2 CAA) on Thursday, Jan. 5 at 7:30 p.m. (ET) at TD Arena. The game will be televised live locally on MyTV Charleston. CofC is off to a 2-0 start in conference play with back-to-back road wins at Elon (66-54) on Dec. 31 and Delaware (65-56) on Jan. 2. This will be their first true game back on their home court since taking down former rival Davidson on Dec. 4. The Cougars went 4-1 on their five-game road swing over the holiday break and currently are No. 52 in the latest NCAA RPI rankings. Redshirt junior guard Joe Chealey and sophomore forward Jarrell Brantley are both on a five-game double-digit scoring streak recording a team-high 19 and 12 points respectively in the program's first-ever road win at Delaware.

EYEING THE TIGERS
Towson was picked to finish second with two first-place votes in the preseason CAA coaches poll. The Tigers lost back-to-back games in the league-opening weekend versus preseason favorite UNCW (67-76) on Dec. 31 and at James Madison (44-64) on Jan. 2. One of the top rebounding teams in the country, they rank No. 53 in rebounds per game (39.7), No. 21 in offensive rebounds per game (13.7 avg.) and No. 27 in rebound margin (7.5). Towson is 2-2 on the road this season and is led in scoring by junior guard Mike Morsell (16.2 ppg).

COUGAR DEFENSE SHINES
The Cougar defense is currently ranked No. 8 in the nation in scoring defense holding opponents to 59.3 points per game and No. 2 in three-point field goal percentage defense (26.5%) second only to another school in the Palmetto State – South Carolina (26.0%). They have held their last five out of six opponents to under 60 points per game.

LET'S GET IT STARTED RIGHT
The Cougars are off to an 11-4 start (losses to UCF, Wake Forest, defending national champion Villanova and LSU) under third-year head coach Earl Grant – the program's best start since the 2011-12 campaign where they also went 11-4 in their first 15 games of the season (losses to UCF, Louisville, George Mason and Wofford). CofC previously went 10-5 in the first 15 games in 2010-11, 2012-13 and 2015-16.

COUGARS ON THE AIRWAVES
Fans can listen to all CofC men's basketball games throughout the 2016-17 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
#13 Joe Chealey, G, 6-4, 195, RS-Jr. (14.5 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 3.1 apg, 32.0 min)
#1 Grant Riller, G, 6-3, 185, RS-Fr. (10.1 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 0.9 apg, 21.9 min)
#12 Cameron Johnson, G, 6-4, 200, Jr. (7.7 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 1.7 apg, 31.1 min)
#5 Jarrell Brantley, F, 6-7, 250, So. (13.4 ppg, 7.9 rpg, 1.4 apg, 31.9 min)
#23 Nick Harris, F, 6-10, 250, So. (5.2 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 0.1 apg, 23.1 min)

PROJECTED TOWSON STARTERS
#33 Eddie Keith II, G, 6-5, 220, Jr. (4.6 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 1.6 apg, 24.9 min)
#23 Mike Morsell, G, 6-5, 215, Jr. (16.2 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 1.5 apg, 28.5 min)
#3 Deshaun Morman, F, 6-3, 195, Jr. (10.3 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 2.1 apg, 26.3 min)
#24 Arnaud William Adala Moto, F, 6-7, 245, Sr. (12.0 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 1.5 apg, 24.3 min)
#44 Alex Thomas, C, 6-9, 250, So. (4.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 0.5 apg, 17.8 min)

INSIDE THE SERIES
Towson leads 5-4 in the all-time series with College of Charleston. Last year, the Cougars swept the regular-season series and ended a four-game skid holding on to a 40-37 road win on Jan. 21 in Towson, Md. It marked the second-lowest point total by an opponent in the program's NCAA Division I history – later eclipsed as the lowest by East Carolina this season (35 points). The series first began in 2004 as the Cougars claimed a 20-point rout of the Tigers (78-58) under former head coach Tom Herrion on Nov. 29, 2004 in Towson, Md.

LAST NINE GAMES IN THE SERIES
W, 65-47 on Feb. 4, 2016 in Charleston, S.C.
W, 40-37 on Jan. 21, 2016 in Towson, Md.
L, 50-53 on Feb. 15, 2015 in Charleston, S.C.
L, 70-74 on Jan. 29, 2015 in Towson, Md.
L, 61-68 (OT) on Feb. 8, 2014 in Towson, Md.
L, 57-72 on Jan. 19, 2014 in Charleston, S.C.
W, 75-58 on Nov. 9, 2012 in Charleston, S.C.
L, 75-86 on Jan. 2, 2006 in Charleston, S.C.
W, 78-58 on Nov. 29, 2004 in Towson, Md.

DELAWARE RECAP
College of Charleston 65, Delaware 56
• The College of Charleston-Delaware series is now tied 5-5. It marked the first-ever road win for the Cougars in four tries and first since becoming members of the CAA in 2013.
• Joe Chealey recorded a team-high 19 points including 6-for-6 from the free throw line – his sixth game this season perfect from behind the charity stripe. He has also turned in a 10-to-2 assist-to-turnover ratio (5.00) over the last two games in conference play.
• Chevez Goodwin made his second career start at Delaware in the absence of sophomore forward Nick Harris, who did not travel due to family reasons. Goodwin also brought down a career-and game-high 12 rebounds and made two blocked shots.
• Jarrell Brantley notched his fifth-straight game in double figures with 12 points including two three-pointers. He has now scored in double figures in 14-of-15 games of the season.
• Terrance O'Donohue registered a season-high five points, one block and one steal off the bench in 16 minutes of action at Delaware.
• The Cougars shot an improved 54.2 percent from the field in the second half and scored the third-most points this season in the second half (45) behind The Citadel (49) on Nov. 11 and Davidson (46) on Dec. 4.
• Delaware was the fourth opponent in the last five games to score 59 points or less in a game against the CofC defense.

COUGAR SOUND BITES
"We know it's a process. We know we have a long way to go to get to where we want to go. It's still early in the season. Right now, we are playing pretty well. We are defending at a high level and have been able to make perimeter shots. We haven't talked about what the future may hold. We just want to stay true to the process, try to get better knowing we have a tough game tomorrow against Towson and keeping it simple. We want to remain humble. We are having success, because our guys are playing together, sharing the ball and are working hard. We can't lose sight of why we are having that success." – CofC Head Coach Earl Grant on the team's success and knowing this is a special group to work with this season

"On the defensive end, the guys are working hard and challenging shots. They boxing out and buying in. They are giving good effort. There's no substitute to hard work. That's what they have been doing – following the game plan which has resulted in our success." – Coach Grant on the team's defense holding opponents to under 60 points over the last three games

"It's a big test for us. We are ready to play in front of our fans again. They (Towson) bring a lot of physicality –
the same type of Towson team we've seen in the past couple of years. They rebound and play hard. We are expecting a dog fight tomorrow night." – Redshirt junior guard Joe Chealey on Towson

"He is an unbelievable player. He is one of, if not, the best player in our league." – Chealey on the play of Jarrell Brantley this season