Cougars Travel To Oklahoma State For Sunday Showdown

Sunday, November 18

Stillwater, Okla.

3:00 PM CT / 4:00 PM ET

College of Charleston

Oklahoma State

Cougars Travel To Oklahoma State For Sunday Showdown

11/17/2018 6:15:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Oklahoma State Game Notes

COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON (3-0, 0-0 CAA) vs. OKLAHOMA STATE (1-1, 0-0 Big 12)
Game #4
November 18, 2018 • 4:00 p.m. (ET) / 3:00 p.m. (CT)
Gallagher-Iba Arena (13,611)
at Stillwater, Okla.

Television: Fox Sports Oklahoma
Radio: College of Charleston Radio Network (ESPN Radio 910 AM | 94.7 FM)
Series History: Series Tied 1-1
Last Meeting: CofC def. Oklahoma State, 66-58, on Nov. 29, 2002 at Great Alaska Shootout in Anchorage, Alaska
Internet: Free Live Statistics at www.okstate.com
Live Video: Free Live Video at https://a.fsgo.com/JUwTTwq9RR
Twitter: @CofCBasketball

THE COACHES
College of Charleston: Earl Grant
Fifth Year at CofC: 80-56
Fifth Year Overall: 80-56
Oklahoma State: Mike Boynton
Second Year at OSU: 22-16
Second Year Overall: 22-16

TELEVISION (Fox Sports Oklahoma)
Play-By-Play: Mike Wolfe
Color Analyst: Bryndon Manzer
Sideline Reporter: Allison Gappa

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

GAME PREVIEW
Riding a three-game win streak, the College of Charleston men's basketball team (3-0) travels to Oklahoma State (1-1) for a Sunday, Nov. 18 showdown at historic Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwater, Okla. The game will be televised live regionally on Fox Sports Oklahoma. The Cougars have had a five-day layoff between games as their home court plays host to the ESPN Charleston Classic this weekend at TD Arena. In fact, CofC is one of only three NCAA Division I schools in the country to host an ESPN tournament on its campus next to Hawai'i and Cal State Fullerton. The defending Colonial Athletic Association champions are coming off its first-ever win over Rhode Island (66-55) on Nov. 13, which vaulted the program to its 18th-straight win at its home venue. The Cougars will match-up against another defensive-minded squad as the Cowboys have held their first two opponents to 63.0 points per game and 37.3 percent shooting from the field. Charleston, led by reigning CAA Player of the Week Grant Riller (23.0 ppg), is currently ranked No. 24 in the latest CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 Poll. A non-bracketed game of the upcoming AdvoCare Invitational, Oklahoma State will return the travel to Charleston next year as part of a 2-for-1 series between the two schools through the 2020-21 season.

OKLAHOMA STATE AT-A-GLANCE
Oklahoma State is led by second-year head coach Mike Boynton, who has Palmetto State ties having played at South Carolina from 2001-04. He was also an assistant at USC, Wofford, Coastal Carolina and Furman. The Cowboys beat UTSA (82-60) in their home opener on Nov. 14 rebounding from a 66-64 loss at Charlotte, who the Cougars will face at home on Dec. 1. They were picked to finish 10th in the preseason Big 12 Conference Poll. Junior forward Cameron McGriff leads OSU in both the scoring (18.5 ppg) and rebounding (8.0 rpg) columns. Last year, the Pokes reached the NIT Quarterfinals and compiled a 21-15 record in Boynton's first year at the helm.

HOW TO WATCH
The College of Charleston at Oklahoma State game will be televised live on Fox Sports Oklahoma and can also be viewed regionally on Fox Sports Southeast and online at: www.FoxSportsGo.com. Check your local listings.

COUGARS ON THE AIRWAVES
Fans can listen to all CofC men's basketball games throughout the 2018-19 season on ESPN Radio 910 AM and 94.7 FM in Charleston or via a live audio link at: www.charlestonsportsradio.com. Voice of the Cougars Everett German will call the action live from Gallagher-Iba Arena.

PROJECTED COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON STARTERS
#10 Zep Jasper, G, 6-1, 170, RS-Fr. (10.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 2.0 apg, 33.3 min)
#1 Grant Riller, G, 6-3, 190, Jr. (23.0 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 3.7 apg, 37.0 min)
#2 Brevin Galloway, G, 6-2, 215, So. (11.7 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 0.7 apg, 27.0 min)
#5 Jarrell Brantley, F, 6-7, 255, Sr. (16.7 ppg, 10.3 rpg, 1.3 apg, 32.3 min)
#23 Nick Harris, F, 6-10, 270, Sr. (0.7 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 0.3 apg, 16.7 min)

PROJECTED OKLAHOMA STATE STARTERS
#13 Isaac Likekele, G, 6-4, 210, Fr. (10.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 4.5 apg, 30.0 min)
#4 Thomas Dziagwa, G, 6-4, 180, Jr. (15.5 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 2.5 apg, 31.5 min)
#21 Lindy Waters III, G, 6-6, 210, Jr. (14.5 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 3.5 apg, 31.0 min)
#12 Cameron McGriff, F, 6-7, 220, Jr. (18.5 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 1.5 apg, 33.0 min)
#14 Yor Anei, F, 6-10, 225, Fr. (2.5 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 1.0 apg, 17.0 min)

LAST TIME COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON …
• The last time College of Charleston beat a Power 5 Conference (SEC, Big 12, ACC, Big Ten or Pac-12) school was during the 2015-16 season under head coach Earl Grant. The Cougars defeated preseason Top 25-ranked LSU with future NBA Draft Pick Ben Simmons (W, 70-58) on Nov. 30, 2015 at TD Arena in Charleston, S.C.
• The last time CofC defeated a Big 12 Conference school (home or away) happened with a 63-59 upset on the road at No. 21-ranked Baylor on Nov. 24, 2012 in Waco, Texas. It marked only the sixth all-time win over a Top 25-ranked opponent in program history.

OFF TO A GOOD START
The Cougars last went 3-0 to start off a season beating The Citadel, Coastal Carolina and Boise State in 2016-17. A win against Oklahoma State would give Charleston its first 4-0 start since the 2002-03 campaign. Ironically, it was in that same season under then head coach Tom Herrion that CofC got its fourth win of the season versus Oklahoma State (W, 66-58) in the semifinals of the Great Alaska Shootout in Anchorage, Alaska. In that game, former CofC great Troy Wheless scored a team-high 17 points and would go on to earn Most Outstanding Player honors of the tournament. The Cougars defeated Wyoming in the opening round and later Villanova in the championship game.

2002-03 SEASON (Program's Last 4-0 Start)
11/22/02 vs. Charleston Southern (W, 84-70)
11/24/02 vs. Webber International (W, 108-48)
11/27/02 vs. Wyoming (W, 81-72)
11/29/02 vs. Oklahoma State (W, 66-58)

2018-19 SEASON
11/06/18 vs. Presbyterian College (W, 85-73)
11/10/18 at Western Carolina (W, 77-74)
11/13/18 vs. Rhode Island (W, 66-55)
11/18/18 at Oklahoma State ??

SERIES HISTORY
The all-time series between College of Charleston and Oklahoma State is tied at 1-1. Both teams last met in the semifinals of the Great Alaska Shootout. This is the second time the Cougars have traveled to Stillwater in the series. The program's 67-49 loss at Oklahoma State during the 1996-97 season was one of only three losses of a memorable 29-3 campaign under legendary head coach John Kresse that led to a Trans America Athletic Conference Championship tournament title and an automatic NCAA Tournament berth. CofC would rattle off 23-straight wins until falling to eventual national champion and No. 15-ranked Arizona in the NCAA Second Round in Memphis, Tenn.

LAST TWO GAMES IN SERIES
W, 66-58 (+8) on Nov. 29, 2002 in Anchorage, Alaska
L, 49-67 (-18) on Dec. 18, 1996 in Stillwater, Okla.

COUGARS AGAINST THE BIG 12
CofC is 3-2 all-time against teams hailing from the Big 12 Conference including previous meetings with TCU (2-0), Baylor (1-0), Oklahoma State (0-1) and West Virginia (0-1). This will be the fourth time the Cougars will have played on the road at a Big 12-member school next to a 86-57 loss at No. 21-ranked West Virginia on Nov. 29, 2014 in Morgantown, W. Va.

GOING TO DISNEY WORLD
For the first time in program history, College of Charleston will participate in the AdvoCare Invitational on Nov. 22, 23 & 25 at HP Field House at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, Fla. The bracket-format tournament features 12 games over three days. Teams will compete once per day, advancing with a victory. The two teams that remain undefeated will face off in the championship game on Sunday, Nov. 25. This year's AdvoCare Invitational is headlined by defending national champion Villanova, while NCAA Elite Eight squad Florida State and Colonial Athletic Association champion College of Charleston highlight the bottom half of the bracket along with LSU's Top-5 recruiting class.

RHODE ISLAND RECAP
College of Charleston 66, Rhode Island 55
• For the third-straight game, College of Charleston went with the starting five of Zep Jasper, Grant Riller, Brevin Galloway, Jarrell Brantley and Nick Harris.
• With the win, the Cougars pick up their first-ever win in the four-game series with Rhode Island which first began with a NIT Second Round meeting in 1996. CofC avenged a 68-62 road loss at URI last season.
• Jarrell Brantley extended his double-digit scoring streak to three games with a team-high 17 points and eight rebounds versus Rhode Island. He has now tabulated 1,324 career points and 721 career rebounds to date which ranks 16th and ninth on the school's all-time lists respectively.
• Grant Riller extended his double-digit scoring streak to three games with 14 points against URI. He also dished out a career-high six assists.
• The Cougars outrebounded the Rams, 41-37, behind eight boards from Brantley, six from Nick Harris and five each from Jaylen McManus and Osinachi Smart off the bench.
• Brevin Galloway turned in back-to-back games in double figures with 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting versus Rhode Island.
• Zep Jasper recorded his second career double-digit game with 10 points in 31 minutes of action against the Rams.
• The CofC defense held Rhode Island to an opponent season-low 55 points and 10.0 percent shooting from long range (2-for-20) including 0-for-13 in the first half of play.

COUGAR SOUND BITES
"This is a growing team. We will focus on growth and being patient with our guys. We have to keep getting better everyday. That's the most important thing is to focus on the process of getting better. Don't get so caught up with results and what the outside is thinking. I just ask that they do everything we ask them to do at a high level." – CofC Head Coach Earl Grant on what he has learned about his team in the first three games of the season

"He is a big physical guy that can give us a presence around the basket. It didn't happen last year when we played up at Rhode Island (with Brantley missing the first seven games of the season due to a knee injury). It was a two-point game with three minutes to go. They (URI) killed us on the glass. We need Jarrell in a game like that because of the physicality of it. We need him to be able to be an anchor for us which he did against Rhode Island." –Grant on the play of Jarrell Brantley and the difference he makes in a game for the Cougars

"Every time we go into a game, we go in and try to win. We understand what this game means and how it can build momentum going into conference play. Coach (Grant) will fix a good game plan up, we will get out there and try to attack them. Every game you get to play, you should be excited, no matter who the opponent is. It should be a fun game." – Brantley on playing Oklahoma State on the road

"We can talk about our young guys all day, because they are so hungry. Like I said the last time, they are so lionhearted. They are going to give it all they have and they are such great basketball players. I know Charleston Basketball will be in good hands for a long time because of those guys." – Brantley on the contributions of the youth on the team

"Last year, we had so many guys who were considered leaders and were older (Joe Chealey and Cameron Johnson). Now, they are relying on me a lot more – not to just score or play defense – to be more vocal. They look to me to make the right plays and reads. It's been challenging, but we've went through it so much in practice that it has made it easier." – Brantley on keeping the guys together in a game like Rhode Island down the stretch