Cougars Trek To Delaware To Begin Second Half Of CAA Play

Thursday, January 25

Newark, Del.

7:00 PM

College of Charleston

Delaware

Cougars Trek To Delaware To Begin Second Half Of CAA Play

1/24/2018 2:30:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Delaware Game Notes

COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON (14-6, 5-3 CAA) vs. DELAWARE (11-10, 4-4 CAA)
Game #21
January 25, 2018 • 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: CofC Leads 7-5
Last Meeting: CofC def. Delaware, 93-78, on Jan. 2, 2018 in Charleston, S.C.
Internet: Free Live Statistics at www.BlueHenStats.com
Live Video: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/delaware/
Tickets: www.BlueHens.com
Twitter: @CofCBasketball

THE COACHES
College of Charleston: Earl Grant
Fourth Year at CofC: 65-54
Fourth Year Overall: 65-54
Delaware: Martin Ingelsby
2nd Year at UD: 24-30
2nd Year Overall: 24-30

TELEVISION (None)

RADIO (College of Charleston Radio Network)
Play-By-Play: Everett German

GAME PREVIEW
The College of Charleston men's basketball team (14-6, 5-3 CAA) will trek to Delaware (11-10, 4-4 CAA) for both teams' second meeting of the regular season on Thursday, Jan. 25 at 7 p.m. (ET) at the Bob Carpenter Center in Newark, Del. The Cougars, who are one game back in the latest Colonial Athletic Association standings behind William & Mary and Northeastern, will begin the second half of conference action with a split home-and-away schedule this weekend. They will host James Madison (6-15, 2-6 CAA) on Jan. 27 at 3 p.m. (ET) at TD Arena, where the Cougars are an undefeated 10-0 on the season and have won 12-straight since the end of last year. Senior guard Joe Chealey is the reigning CAA Player of the Week after knocking down a career-high 33 points in a 76-70 come-from-behind win over Hofstra on Jan. 20. Last week, he averaged a team-best 25.5 points per game including 18 points in an 80-76 victory over defending champion UNCW on Jan. 18. CofC has won three of its last four and is currently ranked No. 15 in this week's CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 Poll. The Cougars are still searching for their first road win in CAA play after close losses earlier this season at Drexel (-5 in OT), Towson (-11) and Elon (-5).

SCOUTING DELAWARE
The Blue Hens are coming off a tough three-game road stretch that included setbacks at Hofstra (63-90) on Jan. 18 and Northeastern (64-76) on Jan. 20, but will play their next three league contests at home. Redshirt junior forward Eric Carter ranks No. 66 nationally in rebounds per game (8.7), which is third best in the league. He had 23 points and eight rebounds in both teams' last outing on Jan. 2. Delaware is 2-1 on its home court this year with back-to-back wins over UNCW and Drexel in the early part of January. As a team, the Blue Hens currently rank third in the CAA with a 1.2 assist-to-turnover ratio (262-222).

AMONG NCAA STATISTICAL LEADERS
The Cougars currently rank No. 10 in the country in fewest turnovers, No. 37 in free-throw percentage (75.9), No. 52 in scoring defense (66.6 ppg), No. 8 in turnovers per game (10.3 avg.) and No. 53 in turnover margin (2.4). They are also one of only 62 NCAA Division I schools with a win-loss percentage of 70.0% and fewer than six losses on the season.

SUITS AND SNEAKERS WEEK
Coaches vs. Cancer Suits And Sneakers® Week is a nationwide event from Jan. 22-28 that unites coaches across the country to raise funds and awareness about the fight against cancer, and promotes the American Cancer Society as a source of inspiration and hope for those facing cancer. While coaching games during the week, coaches wear sneakers with their game attire as a visible reminder about the importance of fighting cancer. Donate to the cause at: www.coachesvscancer.org

COUGARS ON THE AIRWAVES
Fans can listen to all CofC men's basketball games throughout the 2017-18 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
#13 Joe Chealey, G, 6-4, 190, Sr. (18.4 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 3.8 apg, 35.3 min)
#1 Grant Riller, G, 6-3, 195, So. (16.3 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 1.9 apg, 32.8 min)
#12 Cameron Johnson, G, 6-4, 200, Sr. (8.5 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 1.7 apg, 33.0 min)
#5 Jarrell Brantley, F, 6-7, 250, Jr. (16.1 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 1.9 apg, 29.7 min)
#23 Nick Harris, F, 6-10, 260, Jr. (6.4 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 0.5 apg, 26.4 min)

PROJECTED DELAWARE STARTERS
#3 Anthony Mosley, G, 6-1, 180, Sr. (10.8 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 3.2 apg, 31.3 min)
#0 Ryan Daly, G, 6-5, 225, So. (17.1 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 2.3 apg, 37.1 min)
#2 Ryan Allen, G, 6-2, 195, Fr. (14.1 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 1.5 apg, 35.2 min)
#11 Chyree Walker, F, 6-5, 195, Fr. (4.9 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 0.8 apg, 18.9 min)
#5 Eric Carter, F, 6-9, 235, RS-Jr. (9.9 ppg, 8.7 rpg, 1.4 apg, 27.5 min)

INSIDE THE SERIES
College of Charleston holds a two-game advantage in the all-time series with Delaware, 7-5. Last year, the Cougars claimed their first-ever road win (65-56) in the series on Jan. 2, 2017 in Newark, Del. Eight of the 12 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. The Cougars are on a four-game win streak in the series.

LAST 10 GAMES IN THE SERIES
W, 93-78 (+15) on Jan. 2, 2018 in Charleston, S.C.
W, 78-65 (+13) on Feb. 23, 2017 in Charleston, S.C.
W, 65-56 (+9) on Jan. 2, 2017 in Newark, Del.
W, 67-63 (+4) on March 4, 2016 in Baltimore, Md.^
L, 59-62 (-3) on Feb. 18, 2016 in Newark, Del.
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.
^ CAA Tournament

HOFSTRA RECAP
College of Charleston 76, Hofstra 70
• For all eight of its CAA games this season, the College of Charleston started the lineup of Joe Chealey, Grant Riller, Cameron Johnson, Jarrell Brantley and Nick Harris.
• With the win, CofC has now won three-straight meetings in the all-time series with Hofstra. Each have been decided in single digits. The Cougars also take a one-game advantage in the series, 5-4.
• Joe Chealey scored a game-and career-high 33 points versus Hofstra which tied the second-most points scored by a CofC player ever at TD Arena next to CofC all-time leading scorer Andrew Goudelock, who scored 33 points versus Appalachian State on Jan. 21, 2009. Goudelock had 39 points against Dayton – the most points in a single game in the program's NCAA Division I history, in the NIT First Round on March 15, 2011 at TD Arena. It marked Chealey's third career 30-point game. He moved into the Top 5 on the all-time career scorers list surpassing CofC Athletics Hall of Famer Thaddeous Delaney (1,564) with 1,583 career points to date.
• Grant Riller registered 25 points on 11-of-14 shooting from the field against Hofstra. It marked his 12th career 20-point outing and sixth game this season with 20-or-more points. He is currently on a five-game double-digit scoring streak in conference play.
• The Cougars outrebounded the Pride, 31-29, behind a game-high 11 rebounds from Nick Harris. It marked his eighth career double-figure rebounding game and fourth of the season. He also grabbed a career-high tying 10 boards on the defensive end.
• Jaylen McManus came off the bench and brought down a season-high tying six rebounds versus Hofstra.
• The CofC defense held Hofstra to its third-lowest scoring output of the season (70 points). The Pride came into the game averaging 79.5 points per game (all games) and 82.6 points per game (CAA games only).

COUGAR SOUND BITES
"We had a great week as a team and went 2-0. Joe Chealey was unbelievable in the game the other night (against Hofstra) and Grant Riller gave us a big boost as well. Anytime you have great talent – that's what it takes to be good. Because, in any great team, program or organization, you are only as good as your people, who are actually pushing it forward. Our guys are really stepping into their roles." – CofC Head Coach Earl Grant on last week's back-to-back home wins over UNCW and Hofstra

"We are an improved team over the last two weeks. We did have a tough road patch. I'm anxious to get back on the road and I know the guys are as well. We will see if we can play as well on the road as we have at home. They (Delaware) score a lot and have been really good at home with some big wins. They have a good offensive scheme. Their big guy (Eric Carter) really hurt us in the last game here. We have put together a good game plan and will try to go play a good basketball game on Thursday night." – Coach Grant on the team's road struggles and the road rematch with Delaware

"It was good to get our confidence back and get back to practice to prepare us for games. The biggest difference is our defense and we are playing together. When we saw that we could gets stops – that fuels our offense. All we need (to be successful) is our defense and that's what we have to bring with us to Delaware." – Junior Forward Nick Harris on back-to-back home wins over UNCW and Hofstra

"We have to pack our defense with us. Getting two wins at home definitely gives us some momentum going into the next game (against Delaware). We have to continue to keep that edge in the first half. We have to play a full 40 minutes and keep the intensity up on the road. They (Delaware) have a good motion offense and really good guards. We have to keep them out of rhythm on offense." – Junior Guard Marquise Pointer on what the team needs to do to be successful on the road as they have been at home