COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON (13-4, 2-2 CAA) vs. DELAWARE (12-6, 4-1 CAA)
Game #18
January 12, 2019 • 4:00 p.m. (ET)
TD Arena/John Kresse Court (5,100)
at Charleston, S.C.
 
Television: None
Radio: College of Charleston Radio Network (ESPN Radio 910 AM | 94.7 FM)
Series History: CofC Leads 8-5
Last Meeting: CofC def. Delaware, 62-54, on Jan. 25, 2018 in Newark, Del.
Internet: Free Live Statistics at www.CofCStats.com
Live Video: Free Live Video at http://portal.stretchinternet.com/charleston/
Tickets: www.CofCSports.com/tickets
Twitter: @CofCBasketball
 
THE COACHES
College of Charleston: Earl Grant
Fifth Year at CofC: 90-60
Fifth Year Overall: 90-60
Delaware: Martin Ingelsby
Third Year at Delaware: 39-45
Third Year Overall: 39-45
 
TELEVISION (None)
 
RADIO (College of Charleston Radio Network)
Play-By-Play: Everett German
Color Analyst: Danny Johnson
 
GAME PREVIEW
Delaware (12-6, 4-1 CAA) is the next test for the College of Charleston men's basketball team (13-4, 2-2 CAA) as the Colonial Athletic Association race heats up early at the top of the conference standings. The Cougars and Blue Hens will clash on Saturday, Jan. 12 at 4 p.m. (ET) at TD Arena. UD is on a four-game win streak in league play and currently in second place behind CAA leader and unbeaten Hofstra (14-3, 4-0 CAA). Charleston, which has lost back-to-back games including a 79-78 last-second heartbreaker to Drexel on Jan. 10, is in a three-way tie for fourth with Northeastern and UNCW. It's still early, but a win on Saturday could boost CofC in the right direction before a tough road swing next week at NU and Hofstra. For the second time this season, the Cougars had five players score in double figures in a single game in their last outing led by junior guard Grant Riller with a team-high 18 points. Senior point guard Marquise Pointer, who has started in the last three contests, turned in a near double-double with 11 points and career-high tying eight rebounds in the loss. CofC will have to focus on its perimeter defense as the Blue Hens are shooting a conference-best 39.0 percentage (159-of-408) from beyond the arc this season, which ranks No. 25 nationally.
 
DELAWARE AT-A-GLANCE
The Blue Hens put together a solid performance in the non-conference winning eight of their 12 wins on the season prior to CAA play. They beat Saint Peter's, Cornell and Louisiana Tech and lost by just six at Maryland in their season opener. Delaware's roster features one of the best bigs in the league in senior forward Eric Carter, who is averaging double-digits this season in both scoring (17.6 ppg) and rebounding (10.5 rpg). He ranks fifth among CAA scoring leaders and second in rebounding. The Blue Hens knocked off preseason favorite Northeastern in overtime (W, 82-80) on Dec. 30 in Boston. They are 6-3 on the road this season – tied for the third-most road wins in NCAA Division I.
 
GAME PROMOTIONS
It's Youth Sports Day at TD Arena featuring a Frisbee Dog Halftime Show. Discounted tickets for youth sports teams (advance purchase required). Tickets are still available for purchase by calling (843) 953-COFC or online at: www.CofCSports.com/tickets
 
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 TD Arena along with color analyst Danny Johnson on the College of Charleston Radio Network.
 
PROJECTED COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON STARTERS
#21 Marquise Pointer, G, 6-0, 210, Sr. (3.1 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 1.9 apg, 18.6 min)
#1 Grant Riller, G, 6-3, 190, Jr. (22.0 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 4.5 apg, 35.8 min)
#2 Brevin Galloway, G, 6-2, 215, So. (9.1 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 1.0 apg, 26.6 min)
#5 Jarrell Brantley, F, 6-7, 255, Sr. (19.4 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 2.1 apg, 33.7 min)
#23 Nick Harris, F, 6-10, 270, Sr. (3.4 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 0.2 apg, 20.4 min)
 
PROJECTED DELAWARE STARTERS
#0 Ryan Allen, G, 6-2, 200, So. (13.1 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 2.0 apg, 32.6 min)
#1 Kevin Anderson, G, 6-5, 190, So. (10.6 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 4.1 apg, 34.9 min)
#4 Darian Bryant, G, 6-4, 200, RS-Sr. (7.3 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2.2 apg, 34.8 min)
#5 Eric Carter, F, 6-9, 235, RS-Sr. (17.6 ppg, 10.5 rpg, 2.6 apg, 32.2 min)
#32 Matt Veretto, F, 6-7, 210, Fr. (8.5 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 0.5 apg, 23.9 min)
 
SERIES HISTORY
College of Charleston holds a three-game advantage in the all-time series with Delaware, 8-5. Last year, the Cougars swept the regular-season series for the second-straight year including their second-ever road win at Delaware (62-54) on Jan. 25, 2018 in Newark, Del. Nine of the 13 all-time meetings between the two programs have been decided by eight points-or-less. The Cougars are currently on a five-game win streak in the series.
 
LAST 10 GAMES IN THE SERIES
W, 62-54 (+8) on Jan. 25, 2018 in Newark, Del.
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.
^ CAA Tournament
 
DREXEL RECAP
Drexel 79, College of Charleston 78
• College of Charleston went with the starting five of Marquise Pointer, Grant Riller, Brevin Galloway, Jarrell Brantley and Nick Harris (1-2).
• In the loss, College of Charleston still leads 9-6 in the all-time series with Drexel. It was the Cougars' first home loss to the Dragons since 2015. They have won five of the last seven meetings between both schools.
• Grant Riller recorded a team-high 18 points and moved past former CofC great Tom Holst (1961-65) for 13th all-time on school's career scoring list. It marked his 12th-straight game in double figures. He has now tabulated 1,446 career points to date.
• Marquise Pointer registered a season-high 11 points and career-high tying eight rebounds against Drexel. It marked only the second time in his career that he has led the team in rebounding in a single game.
• Jarrell Brantley extended his double-digit scoring streak to 17-straight games this season with 10 points versus Drexel. He also made a career-high six assists.
• Brevin Galloway tied his career-high with 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field with three 3-pointers against the Dragons.
• Nick Harris was dominant inside turning in a season-high 13 points along with six rebounds and two blocked shots in 23 minutes of play versus Drexel.
• CofC shot 55.4 percent from the field (31-of-56) in the loss, but only made 9-of-16 free throws (56.3%).
• The Cougars dished out the second-most assists in a single game this season with 16 versus Drexel. It marked the most against a CAA opponent so far this year.
• Charleston's home-court win streak came to a close at 22-consecutive games – tied as the third-longest home-court win streak in school history and in the Earl Grant Era.
 
COUGAR SOUND BITES
"It's Thursday-Saturday every night in this league with only one day to prep. We haven't been in this situation in awhile. But, we are in it now. We have to go back to work, try to figure out what we can do better and come up with a good game plan for Saturday. Delaware will be another great challenge for us." – CofC Head Coach Earl Grant on bouncing back from the Drexel loss with a quick turnaround to prepare for Delaware
 
"Turnovers and defense. We just needed to get a couple of stops and take care of the ball. What's hard about it is, that's who we are – play defense and take care of the ball. That's what we do. To not be able to do that in the last four minutes was disappointing." – Coach Grant on the most frustrating part of the last minutes of the Drexel game
 
"Saturday's another big game for us. Another test. We get to play at home again, so that's good. We just have to come out aggressive and be ready to play, because Delaware will be prepared." – Junior Guard Grant Riller on moving past the Drexel loss and preparing for Delaware
 
"He is having a great year so far. He is a great shooter. He makes all of us better. He makes me a lot better, because they (opponents) can't hop off me as much (since they have to defend him). He has always been a good defender with an NBA body. He is having an amazing year." Riller on the play and contributions of sophomore guard Brevin Galloway, who scored a career-high tying 17 points against Drexel