Byington Gets First Victory, Cougars End Skid

2012 graduate of Ball-So-Hard University

Final Score: College of Charleston 68, Samford 52

Top Performers: Antwaine Wiggins 25 points (career high), 5-9 3p%

                              Trent Wiedeman 6 points, 14 rebounds (5 offensive)

With their backs against the wall, the 10 players who made the trip to Birmingham were not going to drop their first ever game to the Samford Bulldogs. Despite poor shooting early on, the Cougars were able to gut out a pretty substantial victory by fixing 2 of the 3 glaring issues that have caused this team to freefall over the past four games. They rebounded, especially on the offensive end and they made their free throws. Still way too many three point shots though...

Here are my notes from the game. Kind of hard to really take in what was going on, but Everett and Jeff do paint a lovely motion picture of the action in my imagination.

• Lots of energy and hustle to begin the game. Heard "Sundberg dives to the floor!" a couple times throughout the contest and Lawrence was able to steal a few Samford rebounds from their bigs.
• This type of hustle on the offensive glass and to get turnovers really kept us in the game as Wiggins was the only one hitting shots in the first half
• "They're moving the ball like they did against Morehead State"- Everett German. Thank you Lord Baby Jesus
• First half stats to like: forced 9 Samford turnovers. Wiggins 4-6 from three and with 16 points. 12 offensive rebounds. 11 assists.
• First half stat to NOT like: 8-22 from three. Why on Earth is this team still taking 22 shots from outside? Not sure what was worse, the team taking heavily contested shots or missing wide open looks. 
• Sundberg 4-10 from three for the game. Better than 0-7 I guess.
• ATTACK THE RIM
• No way Andrew Lawrence survives 4 games in 4 days in Asheville. No way. He's gonna be on oxygen and have an IV in him by the second half of Game 2.
• Falling asleep on defense + Samford getting hot from behind the arc = scoring runs by the Bulldogs. Samford had a 16-4 run in the first half and another that cut our 16 point lead to 8.
• Block by Sundberg? Is this real life?
• Samford plays a very methodical offense (kind of like Wofford). Credit the Cougars for keeping the pressure on and not allowing too many backdoor cuts and wide open layups
• To their credit, Cougars cut their three point attempts in half in the second period
• Andrew Lawrence finished the game with 8 assists but shot 3-12 from the field

Stat of the game: Cougars 11-12 from the free throw line. That includes trips to the line for Wiggins and James Carlton.

And a big congratulations to Mr. Wiggins. His previous career high of 24 was against....you guessed it, Samford last year at Carolina First Arena. Go Cougars!

                             

CofC Draws Kent St In Bracket Buster

Not the marquee matchup many of us were hoping for but not a terrible draw considering how far we've dropped over the past few weeks. The game is in Kent, Ohio and the "Golden Flashes" are currently 14-6 on the year and 4-3 in the MAC.

In other Socon Bracket Buster news, Davidson will be matched up against our old friends: Wichita State. That's gonna be a great matchup.

Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch Travel to Birmingham

Samford University (7-13, 4-5)

College of Charleston (12-9, 4-6)

Pete Hanna Center

Tipoff at 8 pm on ESPN 910 AM

When Samford University joined the Southern Conference a few years ago, I knew absolutely nothing about the school. Didn't know where it was, what sports they were good at or what the student population was like. Now I can say with confidence that the university is located just outside Birmingham, Alabama and Buster Bluth of Arrested Development is a distinguished graduate.  

But in a seriousness, the Samford Bulldogs are coming off of what is probably the biggest Socon upset of the year with a 77-74 victory over Davidson. The Bulldogs shot 71% from three (10-14) and had five players in double figures. My guess is someone sacrificed a sheep to the shooting gods.

Interim head coach Mark Byington gets to take on his first road opponent at his new position and he will have to get even more creative with his lineup. Due to a family emergency, Jordan Scott will not be traveling with the team. Couple that with Baru still a question mark and there is a strong possibility we see some 4-guard lineups tonight. It would not be surprising to see a lineup of TD, Nori, Sundberg, Wiggins and Carlton on the floor together. 

There's no way Samford shoots lights out for a second straight game (knock on wood) but they are still a team capable of beating us. We are certainly vulnerable. Let's just see some progress from the bench players and do our best to play tough for 40 minutes. Go Cougars!

Emotional Cougars Can't Get Stops, Lose to Wofford

Final Score: Wofford 68, College of Charleston 59

Top Performers: Trent Wiedeman 18 points, 10 rebounds

                              Karl Cochran 15 points, 7 rebounds

The Cougars came out of the gates with little focus and intensity, but a second half run and subsequent hot shooting wasn't enough to make a dent in Wofford's double digit lead. Things certainly looked grim for the first few minutes of Mark Byington's head coaching career but the last twenty minutes of the game saw a lot more hustle from the Cougars. Players were diving on the floor for the ball and narrowed the rebounding gap a bit, but they just couldn't get a defensive stop when it was really needed.

Minutes before the game, Byington made the announcement that Baru's ankle had not healed enough to risk him playing and the freshman big man was ruled out. Without him in the lineup, the game basically came down to 5-on-2 play. Wofford's starters (who rarely sub out) versus Trent Wiedeman and Antwaine Wiggins. Neither of the them could get anything to fall early and CofC settled for contested jumper after contested jumper. Mostly from three. The offense looked out of sync and Wofford was able to do as they pleased as they cruised to a 28-19 lead going into halftime.

In his presser yesterday, Coach Byington talked about how the kids had been playing with little enthusiasm during the current losing funk. The loss of their coach was only going to make matters worse if they kept it in the front of their minds. Byington talked about how he wanted the guys to leave everything on the floor and just try to have fun. In his words, he wanted to see "guys diving for loose balls" and "high fives" between teammates. He must've said something to remind the kids about this at halftime because they came back onto the floor with a much more positive attitude. They were pushing the pace, going after 50/50 balls and shooting with more confidence. 

The real Achilles heel for this team tonight (and for a lot of the past few weeks) has been defense. No matter what they were doing on offense, Sundberg and Johnson routinely got burned trying to guard the perimeter and Wofford got plenty of open looks. Cochran, who had a big game the last time these two teams met, was hot from beyond the arc and Loesing carved up what the defense gave him.

Few expected us to win this game with what has gone down in the past 24 hours. Had the CofC players showed a lack of effort I would be more upset. The guys showed some emotion in the second half and this patchwork rotation just has to take their lumps. The rest of this season is a learning experience.

Interview For Mocs Mania

Last night I did an interview with the Chattanooga Mocs blog, Mocs Mania, over the whole Bobby Cremins situation (which has now drawn front page coverage from Sports Illustrated and ESPN). You can see my responses to JohnMoc's questions by by clicking here, or if you're feeling lazy, scrolling a bit further.

Cremins Leave of Absence: A Cougars Response

Bobby Cremins has taken a leave of absence from Charleston, as reported earlier. I thought that sending some questions to a Cougars blogger would be a good way to get some insight into the situation there.

Hopefully, this answers some of the questions and provides some insight into the situation. Hope you enjoy it.

Here's a link to his blog- KingKresse.

What is your best memory of the Cremins era at College of Charleston?

There are a lot of memories that come to mind when reminiscing about Coach Cremins. He was truly ingrained into the CofC community. The guy lived just off campus and it was not uncommon to run into him walking his dogs or doing some shopping downtown. But when it comes to the most salient of memories there was one that stood out above the others for me personally. In December of 2008 (the first season that Carolina First/TD Arena was open), Cremins was going for his 500th career victory against Coastal Carolina. With the Cougars up at halftime, a couple friends and I knew we had to do something to commemorate the occasion. We ducked out of the arena, ran to CVS and bought some poster board and magic markers. We made a large digit on each poster, 5-0-0. When the final buzzer sounded we proudly displayed our work for Cremins and the TV cameras. While walking to the locker room with the team, Bobby came up to each of us and shook our hands. He thanked us for coming to the game and spending 10 bucks on supplies. No mention of his milestone. Just a moment that really gave me a glimpse into his character and one I still remember vividly.

Do you think that the recent struggles had anything to do with Cremins taking his leave of absence now? Did Cremins health problems lead to some of the recent struggles?

I think the recent struggles of the team are at least partially attributable to Bobby's exhaustion. Last year he had a senior-laden squad that could effectively coach themselves. Bobby never even had to stand up from the bench. This year he had to rebuild with a largely inexperienced roster. Add to that the drama with Baru's eligibility earlier this year and the key injuries to Willis Hall and Anthony Stitt and you can imagine the undo stress on a 64 year old. Looking back at his last few post-game press conferences, you can see that Bobby looks just beaten down.

Mark Byington has been named the interim head coach. Most people around the SoCon don't know much about Byington, except that he was on Tom Herrion's staff. What is your initial reaction to Byington being in this position?

I believe I speak for many Cougar fans when I say we want all remnants of the Herrion era to be forgotten and pushed as far from CofC as possible. Byington is still here and has been Cremins' right hand man since 06-07. For the most part he has quietly remained under the radar. He's active on the recruiting front (showing kids campus, facilities etc) and is in charge of developing the guards and wing players. I don't know what to expect from him as the leader of this team. Byington's coaching style is much different than Cremins. Very much an X's and O's kind of guy while Bobby mostly lets his players do their thing. Does he have what it takes to command the respect and attention that a 30-year vet like Cremins does? Will he hold players accountable? We shall see.

If this is the end of the Cremins era in Charleston, do you think Mark Byington will be named the permanent head coach?

The remainder of the season is going to be an extended tryout for Mark Byington. Based just on the endorsements he has received from John Kresse and Coach Cremins, it seems to be his job to lose. I think we as a program need to explore all of our options before we name him the heir apparent. If the team responds well to Coach B and turns things around, he'll have a leg up as the incumbent. Should things stay the way they are, there are probably a few other coaches who would make their case for the job.

If Cremins leaves, how do you see that impacting the program on the whole? Recruiting, scheduling, talent development, etc.

No doubt there will be at least some impact on all of those activities. Scheduling UNC, Louisville, Clemson; that doesn't happen without Cremins and his connections. Off the top of my head I can think of 3-4 players on the roster right now who wouldn't be here without Bobby. Andrew Lawrence and James Carlton are both sons of players Bobby recruited at Appalachian State. Trent Wiedeman's mom was a star on the Georgia Tech women's team and Trent grew up idolizing and rooting for Bobby. Adjehi can be added to the mix simply because he instantly fell in love with Coach's demeanor and personality. Coach Cremins was a fantastic recruiter and his coaching legacy afforded the Cougars a lot of scheduling benefits. But he also helped restore the entire program from a very moribund state. Hopefully that still bears some weight when it comes to exposure and recruiting.

Assuming Cremins leaves, and Byington is not the answer, are there any names that jump out at you as potential replacements?

The NCAA coaching landscape is so vast that it's hard to think of a handful of names that could be considered candidates should our coaching search come to that. Athletic Director Joe Hull needs to earn his keep this spring because this should be one position in the mid-majors that draws considerable attention. Brand new arena and training facilities, no football so basketball is the main priority, access to nearby recruits in Atlanta and Charlotte and best of all: a young, talented squad that can be molded into a contender. I'd like to see us go after a Greg Marshall-type of guy (who previously coached the Cougars for a few hours). Someone with a history of developing teams and one who is still young enough to take a hands-on approach with players. Anyone resembling the antithesis of Tom Herrion would also be a reasonable candidate.

The Cougars have been struggling lately (not as much as some SoCon teams, but in a surprising way given where they were less than a month ago). With this coaching change, do you think this team can rebound and make a run at a bye out of the South and go far in the SoCon Tournament? 

There's this phenomenon that seems to happen in sports when a coach is removed. Players seem to rally and play with a rejuvenated energy. Sometimes the feeling lasts, often times it does not. Bobby Cremins left such a large footprint on this program that I would expect the players, at home in TD Arena, to really come out inspired against Wofford. Win or lose we'll probably see more energy from the Cougs Saturday night. The trick for Byington and his job security will be to keep the momentum going into March.

Cremins to Take Leave of Absence, Byington Named Interim

Coach will be stepping down for the remainder of the season

This news was brought to my attention earlier in the afternoon, but I wanted to wait until the College's official press conference before making a post.

Here is Gene Sapakoff's article that was updated shortly after the conference:

"College of Charleston head basketball coach Bobby Cremins is taking a medical leave of absence effective immediately.

Cremins' leave was announced by athletic director Joe Hull at a press conference tonight. Assistant coach Mark Byington has been named interim head coach, Hull said.

The nature of the medical issues affecting Cremins was not specified. Cremins did not attend the press conference.

"I have decided to step aside to take a medical leave of absence," Cremins said in a statement read by Hull. "I have complete faith in (Byington) as do our players."

Cremins, 64, is in his sixth season at the College of Charleston and has a 125-68 record with the Cougars. Best known for his 1990 Final Four appearance as Georgia Tech head coach, the former South Carolina player is 579-375 overall.

The Cougars fell to 12-8 overall and 4-5 this season. Furman on Thursday night handed the injury-riddled Cougars their third loss in a row.

Byington said he assured the players, many of whom were in the TD Arena for the press conference, that Cremins' medical condition was not life-threatening.

Hull said he did not expect Cremins to return this season."

Associate coach Byington will be leading the Cougars the rest of the way this season and likely into the conference tournament. Bobby Cremins' only job right now is to take care of himself and get better. My guess is that the pressures of rebuilding the team after the departure of his first recruiting class, plus the whole Baru NCAA eligibility fiasco, plus the series of injuries to starteres finally took their tole on the 64 year-old coach.

Any analysis of what is to come (Cremins' inevitable retirement, new coaching hire, Byington's on-the-job tryout) will wait til the end of the season or until we know all the facts. Right now the guys have a game to focus on and the fans need to step up the support and remain positive. Go Cougars. 

Cougars Lose Again at Home

Final Score: Furman 69, College of Charleston 63
Top Performers: Brandon Sebirumbi 15 points, 9 rebounds
                             Bryant Irwin 14 points (4-5 on 3's)


Earlier this week I wrote up a draft for a post all about how the injuries to Anthony Stitt and Adjehi Baru might necessitate a change in playing style. With Stitt gone the team had lost its only other player who could effectively run the offense. In Baru, the team lost one of only two capable low post scorers and defenders. My reasoning was this: given who we had on the floor, the best strategy was for the Cougs to get out in transition. We have big men who can run the floor and solid athletes at all positions. Why not try and cause some turnovers, stay active on defense and get out and run? Do our best UNCG impression. That way we wouldn't have to depend on setting up and executing a half-court offense and we could still have Sundberg run to the arc on the break for open threes.

The reason I eventually deleted this post was simple. The obvious flaw in a "running team" is that you can very easily give up a lot of points. Once I discovered this drawback I decided it could not be a long term solution. Saying you "want to run" in basketball is like saying you want to lose weight in real life. Every team would love to do it, but you have to have the defensive discipline to make up for the looks your opponent will get every time you go for a steal, block or defensive rebound.

That was one of the problems for the Cougars tonight. It felt like some of the guys were so anxious to rush down the other way that it caused them to break down at the task at hand. I don't blame them. Getting a fast break dunk or three pointer gets the crowd into the game and breaks up the monotony of what was a very boring game for most of the night. But every time Nori or Jordan gambled for a steal on the perimeter and left Trent out to dry it resulted in easy points for the Paladins. Every time Sundberg would try to block a shot or tip a rebound out to his teammate, it resulted in easy points for the Paladins. Every time Adjehi was going up for a defensive rebound and the rest of the team "leaked out" for the man advantage going the other way, it resulted in easy points for the Paladins.

The team is still largely inexperienced and I would expect this kind of behavior to be corrected after a few games. When good teams struggle, a few things happen. Sometimes it helps to try and get to the basket, draw the foul and earn points from the line. Sometimes teams defer to their best player and let him make plays. The first is not really an option for this team because we aren't a threat from the charity stripe. The second option remains a work in progress because a certain LA Laker filled that void nicely for the better part of four years. Although it is certainly disheartening when none of the leaders on this team are demanding the ball when the team needs points. Antwaine did his best but Furman caught on to his dribble drive technique pretty fast.

The problem with this team right now is their inability to establish their identity. I know that's generic post game coach-speak so let me explain further. With a major part of our team gone for the foreseeable future and our shooters in a scoring drought, the team needs a new strategy. Cremins' beloved threes aren't falling now and they won't any time soon as long as they continue to be contested and out of the offensive flow. What happens when what is allowed isn't working? Does it really take a double digit deficit to a mediocre team like Furman to rattle the guys enough to play defense?

"But we played hard-nosed D for the first 25 seconds on the shot clock" I can hear them saying.

Someone needs to hold the guys accountable. Whether it's Cremins or the team leaders. I'm not going to sell my Cougars yet because there is still plenty of talent on the roster. But the time to rally already passed, now they're playing for pride.

Furman Rematch at TD Arena Tonight

College of Charleston (12-7, 4-4)

Furple (9-10, 3-5)

TD Arena

Tipoff at 8 on ESPN3 

The second half of conference play begins tonight for the Cougars as they get a chance at sweeping the series with Furman. The next two home games are against fellow Socon South division teams and a win today as well as Saturday against Wofford would go a long way in helping us keep our heads above water in the race for the 2S seed.

If the Cougs want to remain competitive and a little bit formidable to their opponents, this game is a must win. Furman is decent for a Southern Conference team but they are far from a polished product. Defeating them on the 7th was a solid victory but it didn't take away from the sting of that Wofford loss. Now Cremins has a whole different starting lineup and rotation and the game will likely look very dissimilar to the one played in Greenville. 

Matt Sundberg will once again get the start but we could see a little Baru action if we're lucky. Being that Trent has been playing on a swollen ankle all year, I wouldn't put it past the athletic staff to put Baru in the game, and have him play significant minutes if we're losing. 

Again, this game really is important for us to not fall too far behind in the increasingly disappointing South division. In the words of the late Al Davis, "just win baby". Go Cougars!

Another Great Article on Adjehi

This one from the Charleston City Paper (one of my favorite local publications). Just look at that game face.

http://www.charlestoncitypaper.com/charleston/adjehi-baru-courted-by-fame/Content?oid=4004103 

Downward Spiral Continues: CofC vs GSU Recap

Final Score:Georgia Southern 64, College of Charleston 58

Top Performers: Eric Ferguson 19 points, 8 rebounds

                             Antwaine Wiggins 17 points, 12 rebounds

Upon hearing that Adjehi Baru would not be playing in this game as a precaution for his sprained ankle, my expectations took a nosedive. The Cougars were forced to play their 4th and 5th best post players a combined 51 minutes due to the injuries to Hall and Baru plus some early foul trouble from Trent. The Eagles took advantage by dominating the Cougs inside the paint and out rebounding them by ten. 

Here are a few quick thoughts from this one, both good and bad:

• A lineup on the floor of Scott, Johnson, Sundberg, Wiggins and Carlton saw more time on the court last night than any CofC fan could have predicted due to the aforementioned issues plus the need to sit Lawrence at least a few seconds every game (he played all but 120 seconds). That lineup has no true point guard and no true post player. The results were not pretty. With those five on the court together, the offense often stalled as everyone just sort of hung out on the perimeter. 
• Way too many open looks under the basket for GSU. Sundberg and Carlton all too often overcommitted to the player driving and poor Trent was forced to spin on his heels like a top as the Eagles got backdoor dunk after backdoor dunk.
• Two great plays by Trevonte Dixon in this one. The buzzer beating dunk to close out the half and breaking up an alley oop on the defensive break against a 2-on-1
• Andrew Lawrence, get out of this habit of not taking your time to shoot your first free throw. Missing on a technical shot is very uncharacteristic of you. 
• James Carlton brings a different dimension to the Cougars' game, but his frame is so thin and lanky that he repeatedly gets shoved and bullied out of position by opposing players. Might be an issue of footwork or maybe he needs to hit the gym harder.
• Wiggins did his best yet again to will his team to victory. In his last four years at the College he has not been a part of a losing funk like this team finds themselves in. It's got to be hard for him to play on this team right now with visions of Jeremy Simmons and Andrew Goudelock dancing in his dreams.
• Not sure what was better. Nori Johnson's hair-raising dunk in the second half, or Baru and Stitt's reaction on the bench. The big man "caution tape" move as I like to call it, is one of my favorite bench reactions. 

Georgia Southern Tomorrow

Georgia Southern (6-11, 4-3)
College of Charleston (12-6, 4-3)
WS Hanner Fieldhouse
Tipoff at 7:30 on ESPN3


That video was worth posting for that catchy-ass Georgia Southern-themed rap.

Unbeknownst to most GSU fans, their school also offers sports programs separate and distinct from football. Who would've thought? Charlton Young's team of athletes has another year of experience under their belt and they seem to be slowly figuring things out. The Eagles are tied with the Cougars and Terriers for 2nd place in the Socon South and will be looking to defend their home court. Eric Ferguson is one of the "Young" guys on the team who seems to be panning out. He's right up there with Grosselle, Wiggins and Simpson for the Socon scoring title, averaging just over 16 points per game, and also leads his team in rebounding. GSU is looking to avoid a three-game skid that began with the team dropping both games in that upstate road trip to Wofford and Furman. If the Cougars are going to have a shot at avoiding a .500 record in conference we're really going to need to fix the blatant rebounding and free-throe shooting problems.

And that's about all I got...uh...one time a Georgia Southern player flicked me off at a game because I poked fun at his lack of playing time.

I'm not going to be able to watch this one live due to some traveling so I'll have to watch the replay online and depend on the CofC fan forum for my early analysis. Go Cougars!

Clueless First Half Dooms Cougars, Wildcats Have Their Way

Final Score: Davidson 87, College of Charleston 69

Top Performers: Jake Cohen 29 points, 14 rebounds

Very physical game. Cohen, Baru, Wiedeman and Johnson all hit the deck in agony at certain points and there were a total of 44 fouls called on the night. With Socon Tournament implications, the Cougars once again showed the same lapses in focus on defense that plagued them in our losses over the last month. Not getting back off an inbounds, losing a man on a switch, letting Cohen get his shots off. It was almost like pick your poison in the first half.

What hurt the most (and trust me, there was a lot that hurt) in that first twenty minutes was how much our inability to rebound affected the rest of our game. Over halfway through the period and the Cougars were only able to amass two, count 'em, two rebounds. Baru eventually finished with 3 for the game and Wiedeman had 5 in performances that were in stark contrast to the Elon game. It could've been chasing Cohen around the court or the physicality of the game but it negated what little we were doing well on defense. Can't stay in the game when the other team is getting 2-3 chances at a shot per possession and we can't come up with any second chances. Lawrence began the game driving to the rack at will and getting steals but he and the other Cougars couldn't find the bottom of the net and Davidson was quick to limit any further opportunities.

A second half mini-scoring run spearheaded by Antwaine and Nori Johnson almost got us within striking distance. With Cohen on the bench and a switch to a pressing defensive set, things got interesting but that 12 point halftime deficit was too much to overcome. Throw in us trading misses for threes with the Wildcats the last couple minutes and you get that final blowout score. 

More notes I took on the game:

• Bad breaks and some fluke plays set the tone in the first half. Within the first 3-4 baskets Davidson made, one was a tip-in by Baru and one was a block by Trent that landed right in the hands of Cohen in front of the basket.
• Did I mention the Cougars only collected two rebounds in the first 10 minutes?
• Not sure what was more embarrassing for the city of Charleston, CofC's dreadful free throw shooting or the audience's applause to certain remarks at the GOP debate...(political statement!)
• If there was a player for the Cougs who did deserve to be a "Top Performer" it would have to be Nori. He really came to play. Fifteen points on 5-8 shooting, three steals and he actually hit his free throws. 
• Not far behind Nori in terms of effort was Antwaine. Those two, four-point plays he had in the first half were a rare highlight. Also led us in rebounding and only had 1 turnover. 
• Scary moment for Cougar fans when our other prized freshman went down grasping his ankle. Someone must have shot Baru up with one of those needles Kobe's been using on his wrist because the kid came right back in and blocked a shot. 
• Sundberg was 1-6 on threes for the game (the team was lucky to end up 7-26 thanks to Twaine and Nori). He also got abused by Cohen and Ben-Eze many a time. Starting to forget what he brings to the table. Not completely forgotten, but starting to...

The Wildcats played lights out and really stuck it to the Cougs when it counted. Late in the shot clock, after we went on a run etc. It certainly hurts our standings in the South but we knew this would be a tough game. The next time we play this team is at home on February 11th and I still think we have a shot. Hell, if we could make some damn free throws and rebound at a respectable rate, this one could've gone down to the wire. But for now, Coach has got to really get on the guys about playing hard AND smart for a whole 40 minutes. On to Georgia Southern. 

This kid's an asshole. His Justin Bieber friend too

The Game We All Had Circled

Davidson (12-4, 6-0)

College of Charleston (12-5, 4-2)

Belk Arena

Tipoff at 7pm on ESPN3

I was watching NBA TV the other day and Shaq, Reggie Miller, Charles Barkley etc were having a roundtable discussion about rivalries. Some of the retired pros referred to their biggest "rival" as the guy who really got under their skin during a game. Talked trash, played dirty and still got their shots to fall. Others talked about admiration for their rivals. Reggie in particular mentioned how his biggest rivals were those with skills that pushed him to refine his own. They were rivals because they were hogging the spotlight where Reggie wanted to be.

Now based on what camp you're in, CofC's rivalry with Davidson over the past couple years can be seen either way. You may think that McKillop's motion offense results in too many uncalled moving picks and over-the-backs. Or you may admire McKillop's style of play and envy Davidson's NCAA Tournament success. Personally I fall into both categories. From 7 to 9pm tomorrow night I'll be yelling at the screen as I watch the game, but outside that time frame I have nothing but respect for the Davidson program. In the past decade they have been where CofC wants to be again and they remain one of the classiest organizations in the country. To be at the top of this league, one has to once again go through Davidson. 

Going into this season, the Wildcats were correctly picked by many to finish at the top of the conference this year. A lot of Cougar fans saw us as a capable but probably underwhelming team that might make some noise. It wasn't until the Cougars got off to a fast start that many people started looking at this game as a real statement win that would prove we belong at the top of the Socon this year. Well, the momentum has slowed down a bit but this game is still a big one. A win at Belk Arena would make some noise around the conference and draw the gap between the Cougars and Wildcats a bit closer.

There is going to be a lot to analyze after tomorrow night, but here are 5 things I'll be looking for:

1) Keeping Jake Cohen off the arc: at 6'10, Cohen is going to be a handful for Wiedeman, Baru or Sundberg. This is one of the first times our big are going to have to chase their man out to the perimeter and prevent a guy like Cohen from burning them. 

2) Fouls and Free Throws: The Cougars average only about 15 personal fouls per game while the Wildcats average about 21. This does not bode well for the Cougs and their lousy free throw shooting. Also, the Wildcats would be wise to try and foul out our more physical players (Wiedeman, Baru, Lawrence). Our bigs are gonna have to stay planted and Nori and Andrew are gonna have to watch the hand checks because any of those four sitting on the bench will only hurt us.

3) Pace: The Wildcats are scoring a very impressive 79.6 points per game (18th in the country). Our defense is good not great so chances are the Wildcats will get close to that mark. I want to see what the tempo looks like tomorrow. We can outrun teams like UMass (who beat Davidson) or we can slow it down and play in the halfcourt like we did against Elon. Whether or not our threes are falling is probably going to have a bigger effect on the pace we play versus any other metric.

4) Big Game 'Twaine: Against George Mason, Tennessee and Louisville, Mr. Wiggins played at a whole different level. He seems to always get hyped for big games but is sometimes invisible in conference matchups. So which Antwaine are we gonna see? The slashing, stealing and dunking 'Twaine? Or the deferring, poor shot selecting, this-is-just-another-game 'Twaine?

5) What's your point?: I said this after the Elon game. I really don't like the idea of Nori or Antwaine bringing the ball up court with Lawrence on the bench. Turnovers will play a big part in this one and we'll need to limit ours to have a shot.

This has all the makings of a great Socon showdown. Go Cougars!

ESPN Mid-Major Report: Games to Watch

UNCG Over Citadel at the Buzzer: Video

I hate Citadel in a friendly rivalry sort of way; but the manner in which they went from unbridled delight to soul-crushing defeat in such a short time period is depressing even to me. With Trevis Simpson's dunk at the buzzer, UNCG swept their Lowcountry road trip to win their first two conference games.

Cougar Bigs Feast on Elon

Adjehi Baru stepped up big without his freshman teammate

Final Score: College of Charleston 63, Elon 44


Top Performers: Adjehi Baru 18 points (career high), 12 rebounds (career high)
                             Trent Wiedeman 10 points, 17 rebounds (career high)

The CofC big men really had a field day tonight. It could have been the need to step up with Anthony Stitt gone, their natural height advantage over the Phoenix or Troutman's early foul trouble. Whatever the reason, Trent and Adjehi both posted career nights in the lopsided victory. Adjehi got it going early with some fast break buckets and Hulk was able to push and smash his way to the basket on offense. Even Wiggins got into the action on the glass; the Cougar's front line pulled down 36 rebounds between the three of them. With Davidson on the horizon, the guys needed a confidence booster to get their swag back and this victory may have helped. We're not back there yet, but we looked better.

Ten more thoughts on the game:

1) Definitely more hustle and energy to start this game. The Cougars were pestering Elon one-on-one and eventually forced an abysmal 18% field goal percentage from the Phoenix in the 1st half. We were getting in transition, cleaning the boards and showing a more consistent commitment to defensive pressure.

2) Dear Adjehi: you are bigger, stronger and can jump higher than anyone on Elon's team. Go up strong a little more often rather than settling for a layup. The steal you had early, Wiedeman's pass to you off his own steal. Jam it home. I know you have it in you.

3) Nori really gambles on defense. Sometimes it works out and he gets the steal. Sometimes he jumps too far and finds himself behind the offense. Sometimes he gets three fouls called against him in a matter of minutes. Gotta watch the hand slaps.

4) Wiggins had a very un-Wiggins play at the beginning of the 2nd half. After getting the steal, he and Baru ran down the court with a 2-on-1 advantage. With a half step lead, Baru was calling for the ball on the break. Antwaine resisted the temptation to force a pass or shoot an uncontested three and took a breath. Adjehi got the dominant position in the post and Wiggins threw a perfect pass for two. Great play by the senior.

5) James Carlton sighting!

6) All too often, our guys don't even look to the big man off the pick. Trent, Adjehi, and Sundberg always come out to the perimeter and Lawrence/Wiggins rarely reward a big if they're open. Let's recreate that Stitt to Baru magic that occurred against Tennessee!

7) I won't crucify Jordan Scott tonight. He gets open (even if he misses), plays hard on D and feeds the post. That's enough for me.

8) Wiggins' floater looked good tonight.

9) Wish Bobby would have thrown in the subs earlier. We were up by more than 20 with eight minutes to go. Put in TD and James Carlton. We're gonna need them down the stretch and Lawrence could use the oxygen. I know absolutely nothing more about Trevonte than I did after the preseason.

10) Antwaine seemed to be the primary ball-handler bringing the ball up court with Lawrence sitting. He didn't make any mistakes,  but I really don't think this is a long-term answer to our lack of point guards.

Elon Presents Next Test for New-Look Cougars

Lucas Troutman (31) is averaging 12.7 points and 6 rebounds per game

College of Charleston (11-5, 3-2)
Elon (8-7, 3-1)
TD Arena
Tipoff at 7pm on ESPN3 (if it's working)


The Cougars face a quick turnaround as they must prepare for the North Division-leading Phoenix coming down to Meeting Street tomorrow night. Coach Cremins and his staff have essentially a day and a half to integrate Jordan Scott, Nori Johnson and Trevonte Dixon into their game plan and prepare the team to play inspired for a full 40 minutes.

It's going to take that sort of effort to beat Elon- one of the surprise teams of the conference this year. This will be the first time I've seen them play this season. Judging by stats alone they score and rebound very balanced amongst themselves. In Socon play they have beaten Furman, Greensboro and Citadel with a lone conference loss to Georgia Southern.

The eyes of the Cougar faithful will not be on the Phoenix though. Most of the fans will be looking to see how the little used players respond to prime time minutes. Nori Johnson has gone from unheralded garbage time performer to starter in less than three weeks time. And coach has mentioned that we will see our first glimpse of freshman Trevonte Dixon. TD was brought in to push Jordan Scott for the starting 2 guard spot. But with few ball handlers on the team, coach needs to give the kid some burn and see if he can flourish like his freshman teammates have. From what I saw of him in preseason, he has a long way to go but that was certainly a small sample size.

Defeating Elon will be a tough task. If we had a few days to practice I would feel better but I expect our offense to really be out of sync. It's going to take a don't-sleep-on-us-yet mentality from the leaders of this team (Lawrence, Wiggins, Wiedeman) to take this one. Lets hope they, and the newcomers, have some fight in them. Go Cougars!

Stitt's Injury and a Loss to UNCG: Repercussions

Summaries of last night's game can be found here and here. The post I put up last night pretty much says everything that needed to be said. The Cougars came out strong and jumped out to an early 10 point lead on the back of Trent's low post game. Once the lead was big enough, the team elected to conduct outside shooting practice and ease up on defense. UNCG was able to chip away at the lead the rest of the first half and took the lead going into the break after an and-1 with two seconds remaining. The Cougars continued to execute poor shot selection and gave up enough second-chance points to throw the game away in the 2nd half.

Only time will tell if the Cougars can recover from this one from a mental standpoint. The biggest setback to them competing for a Socon crown now is the loss of Anthony Stitt. It looks like he'll be done for the rest of the season and the team has no choice but to move on without him. With that medical conclusion, CofC is up to 4 season-ending injuries to starters in the last 3 years (Willis and Stitt this year, Jeremy last year and Wiggins the year prior). 

Here are the biggest repercussions of our loss of Anthony:

1) The team has no other point guard when Lawrence is out of the game

• One of Cremin's strategies this year was to not burn out Andrew Lawrence during the regular season. The team captain played pro-level basketball every day over the summer as he practiced and competed with the British national team. The emergence of a freshman like Stitt was so valuable because he could run the offense with Lawrence getting some rest. When the two were on the court together, Lawrence could play off the ball more as well. The team has no other true point guards. Jordan Scott doesn't have the handles, Nori played forward until he came to the College and TD was brought in to compete at the shooting guard spot (not to mention he doesn't get any PT now). I shutter to think about what kind of pressure teams are going to put on our secondary ball handler this year.

2) The effect on roster substitutions goes beyond the guard spots

• With the loss of another star reserve (we'll call him that because he only started the last two games), we are down to a small forward playing in the post (Sundberg) and a sophomore who is just now earning his first playing time (Nori Johnson). I already mentioned how Nori cant be counted on to play the point so Coach might be forced to use Jordan more. Not only that, but Sundberg cannot be relied on to carry some of the scoring load from three AND play in the paint. My opinion is that we have to see more James Carlton and let Sundberg play on the perimeter where he belongs.

3) The team needs an emotional leader

• Willis Hall was supposed to fill that role this year. Even as an underclassmen, he could be seen pumping up his teammates after a play or jarring at them after a dumb execution. He still does an OK job from the bench but it has nowhere near the same impact. Trent talked earlier in the year about how he would need to be more vocal but I haven't seen it yet. Wiggins and Lawrence would seem to be the most rational picks. Lawrence the captain, Wiggins the lone senior. But Lawrence is more of the quiet type who leads by example and Antwaine mostly keeps to himself with his three best friends having graduated. Anthony might not be the one running drills in practice, but he always showed emotion and heart when he was on the floor; something that could rub off on his teammates. He would scream and punch the air after driving to the basket, clap and snarl on defense and slap the backs of his teammates heads going into a timeout. We saw how the team slumped and played with no effort last night. They need a shot of emotion if they're going to avoid folding on the year. 

Stitt Done for the Year

Broken hand. To play so well as a freshman, work your way into the starting lineup...and now this. My heart truly goes out to the kid. The team has got to rally now and move on without him.When it rains it pours.

UNCG 73, CofC 66

Absolutely pathetic. I'm disgusted by this team's severe lack of effort, focus and judgement. Terrible coaching, terrible play by Wiggins and Sundberg and an injury to one of our best players to boot. This team needs a serious gut check if we're going to avoid finishing in the bottom half of the South division. That's all.

Stitt to remain a starter, Nori first off the bench

Straight from BC's mouth

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1EfXOeeoPvg&feature=plcp&context=C3f16b2fUDOEgsToPDskJ-CKkElYxBwpf9fHpMg2zF

UNCG at College of Charleston

College of Charleston (11-4, 3-1)
UNC Greensboro (2-14, 0-4)
TD Arena
Tipoff Thursday at 7 on ESPN3


With a disappointing upstate road trip behind them, the Cougars return to the safe comforts of TD Arena for a two game Socon homestead against UNCG and Elon this week. First on the schedule are the Spartans.

Once again, UNCG played themselves a crazy-ambitious out of conference schedule to begin the year. At Tennessee, Georgetown, Florida State, Duke and Richmond plus VCU and ECU at home. Last year they had a similarly atrocious record coming out of non-conference play. This is a team that is not as bad as their record sounds. However, the 0-4 record they post in the Socon right now is a good indicator that they aren't the cream of the conference. The Spartans were blown out by App State and more recently Davidson and also lost to Western Carolina and Elon.

Trevis Simpson (starring in the above video) is an athletic freak. He would easily be in the discussion for conference POY if it weren't for his team's record (you too, Groselle). Coming into their game against us, the Spartans have lost 11 straight. Their coach, Wes Miller, is the youngest head coach in Division 1 basketball at age 28. For reference, Miller was still playing college basketball as recently as 2007.

Taking advantage of Simpson's talents, the Spartans play at a pretty fast pace and get up and down the court on offense and in transition. To keep the momentum and energy up, UNCG subs often with a rotation of at least 9 players. From what I saw in the Davidson and Miami games, this subbing sometimes results in the offense not really cohering. The quick pace and inability for different lineups to gel has resulted in an average of almost 18 turnovers per game over the past 3 contests. Aside from the obvious speed and leaping advantages Trevis has on the wing, the Cougars also need to be careful not to leave Drew Parker open behind the arc. He leads the Socon in 3P%, shooting a blistering 52.5%.

The Cougars have looked sloppy over the past few weeks but got bailed out with hot shooting against Coastal and good defense against Furman. I think the return home to TD Arena, along with a rowdy student section is just what the Cougars need to get the mojo back and start playing with confidence again. This is a game we could definitely lose if we're not careful and I hope our players aren't just looking at win-loss records. Wiggins will almost assuredly be guarding Simpson so it's safe to say 'Twaine won't have much in the tank for scoring. The Spartans aren't big or heavy up front so Trent and Adjehi should be ok. UNCG really resembles UMass in how they play so I'm hoping Stitt will play the way he did against the Minutemen. Go Cougars!

King Kresse: Big in the Ukraine

One year! YYYEAAAAHHH!!!!

Tomorrow, January 11th, marks the one year anniversary of this blog. I can't believe King Kresse.com has made it this far and I have to thank you readers for visiting here so often. I'd also like to thank you, worthless Business Administration degree, for giving me nearly unlimited time to attend games and write my posts. 

To celebrate this milestone, I've compiled some interesting stats from Blogger's dashboard. Overall this website has more than 6,000 unique visitors as well as over 130 posts and counting.

Most Popular Posts

1) Video Debut: Andrew Goudelock Senior Highlights

2) Who is Lime Green Sweater?

3) Andrew Goudelock Draft Chatter

4) Baru's Dunk Against UMass

5) Cougars as NBA Players

*More stats after the jump

Nice article in P&C about the crappy Socon

"With one program this year, I had a long conversation with their athletic director about [scheduling lower division opponents]," said Iamarino, who declined to name the team. "I just felt it was an upper echelon program that was not testing itself sufficiently."
 - Socon commissioner John Iamarino


Hmmm, wonder who that could be. Read the rest of the article here

Defense Steps Up, Rebounding Still Not There in Win Over Furman

Two of these freshmen led the Cougars today, and all four saw playing time

Final Score: College of Charleston 66, Furman 43
Top Performers: Anthony Stitt 14 points in 37 minutes (first career start)
                              Adjehi Baru 14 points, 7 rebounds

This was a good win. Not a great win, but a good one. Furman doesn't look like the type of team ready to compete for a bye in the Socon Tournament, but a conference road win is always nice. Put it this way, had we lost this game, there might be reason to start panicking a little bit. The two main areas where we came up short against Wofford and George Mason were defense and rebounding. One of those areas was far and away better than the last two games. The other still has me asking questions.

Here are three things that impressed me and three more that had me frustrated. First the good:

3 Cheers
1) The level of intensity and focus the Cougars displayed on defense- We came out so lethargic on defense against Wofford that the Terriers scored about 15 points above their average on us and 50% from three in the first half.  From the tipoff tonight we were actively scrambling and rotating quickly enough on D to frustrate Furman into 23 turnovers. It could've been Stitt's defensive mentality rubbing off on the starters or a verbal tongue lashing yesterday by the coaches that caused the sudden change. Whatever it was, it made it possibe for the Cougars to have a poor shooting day from the arc and the stripe and still come away with a 20 point victory.

2) The reserves- Anthony Stitt was such a spark off the bench for us that I was worried we would have no second unit when he was named the starter for tonight. Playing in his most game minutes ever, Nori performed very admirably considering he's never really been given a shot on the floor. His natural position is still up for debate but he's got a nice looking shot from outside, drives to the hoop and plays solid defense. Speaking of driving, Sundberg didn't hit a single three but still finished with 6 points by taking advantage of his height and going to the basket. Even though he was held scoreless, Jordan Scott didn't fold when coming off the bench. He was also active on defense and had the two prettiest assists of the game: one on a backdoor cut to Nori and one to Trent in the post.

3) Baru's post moves- I think his best offensive production was still his game against Coastal, but Adjehi had some nifty moves in the paint aside from just his pull-up jumper. Not only that, but he followed up offensive opportunities by getting the o-rebound. He had four on the night.

3 Jeers
1) Rebounding, rebounding and rebounding- Please no more tip-outs, no more running back on D before the ball misses the basket or not chasing a long rebound. With Trent battling a nagging foot injury (he was in a boot up until game time), the front line of Johnson, Sundberg and Baru is not going to collect many rebounds. But the 17-6 edge Furman kept until the final minutes of the first half is unacceptable. Gotta continue to work on that in practice.

Upstate Road Trip Part Two: Furple

Furman (7-7, 1-2)

College of Charleston (10-4, 2-1)

Timmons Arena

Tipoff at 2:30 on CSS

What I'm most looking forward to with this one will be the level of effort and focus we put in and any significant roster changes that may take place.

• Is the Stitt over Scott move going to be permanent?
• Does Nori take Stitt's place as our 6th man?
• Was the Wofford game just a fluke? Or will this team struggle with conference opponents that have a specific game plan to stop us?
• When does Hulk have a breakout game?!
• How many points do we give up to Furman's best players? And how many of those will be threes?

Cougars Lay Down Against Wofford, Cochran (Now with Screenshots!)

For the 2nd consecutive game, an opposing player had a
career night against the Cougars

Final Score: Wofford 75, College of Charleston 58
Top Performers: Karl Cochran 21 points (6-12 from three)

If I had written this post last night, it would have a markedly different tone and be inappropriate for children under 17. Since then, I have composed myself a little bit more and rewatched the second half with a more neutral, emotionless bias.

We laid an egg. Plain and simple. We were exposed last week by a strong George Mason team and the coaching staff had 7 days to prepare for Wofford and work out the shortcomings in defense and rebounding that plagued us against the Patriots. In the first road game of the season we showed little to no improvement in these two key areas save for a five minute stretch to open the second half. To make matters worse, we had a poor shooting night and never moved the ball enough to get a wide open look (like the ones we were giving up).

Credit Wofford. They knew how to attack the zone we've been using so much. Even when we switched to man-to-man, they still found enough space to make passes and create shooting opportunities. Freshman Karl Cochran had a career high 21 points while Brad Loesing and Kevin Giltner had their way with us.

The 10-3 record may have fooled us Cougar fans a bit. We were skeptical before the season and now I'm starting to come back down to Earth. The team is still young and there are things that ALL young teams have trouble doing. Winning on the road. Playing defense for an entire game. Making in-game adjustments. An eight man team that includes five underclassmen learns to do those things as time goes on. We'll have our ups and downs just like Wofford, another young team, will have theirs. This was an "up" for Wofford and a "down" for us. The Georgia and UMKC games were "downs" for Wofford. Meanwhile we escaped against Clemson and UTC. Mike Young had a very specific plan to attack us and his team executed it to near perfection.

There are certain issues though that need to be fixed immediately before we resume play against Furman tomorrow. We came out looking lazy, disinterested and stunned by how easily Wofford was scoring. Agan, rebounding and defensive rotations were the biggest atrocities. We'll throw in shot selection as well because I have a good example.

Take a look at the following screenshots....

The Annual Upstate Road Trip

Wofford (8-6, 1-1)

College of Charleston (10-3, 2-0)

BenJo Arena, Spartanburg, SC

Tipoff at 7pm on ESPN3

The only time I've seen the Terriers play this year was earlier today when I watched the first half of the snoozefest between them and Wake Forest. Like many of the teams in the Socon, Wofford is in rebuilding mode with the loss of some of their best players. Noah Dahlman and his goofy free throw shooting. Gone. Tim Johnson and his posters. Gone. All thats left from the back-to-back Southern Conference champions is fifth year senior Brad Loesing. Coach Mike Young has some talented freshman, but until his team gels together they will be relying primarily on their defense to win games. 

The Terriers are limiting their opponents to just 62.1 points per game on 42% shooting. On the year the Cougars are averaging 74.2 points on 46% shooting offensively. The Terriers play mostly man-to-man defense and are really good at rotating and doubling the ball handler. That second one could cause trouble for the Cougars. Having the big men set picks on the perimeter is a major part of our offense. If Wofford can risk leaving the big man open and put two bodies on either Lawrence or Stitt, they'll get some takeaways.

The image of our point guards crouching over as two Louisville players form an eclipse over them still haunts me... We'll need to do a better job of finding the open man when this situation inevitably occurs. That goes for Trent as well.

Offensively, none of the Wofford players are particularly intimidating. Loesing can ball and has really stepped up this year. Kevin Giltner averages 16 points a game but he has been in a funk recently (a combined 5-20 from three point range in his last two games). Loesing will find open men, but the team no longer runs plays through the post like they did with Dahlman. 

I've talked a lot this season about our front court and I will continue to do so for the duration of the conference season. Look for those guys to have solid games as the talent level of conference forwards takes a noticeable drop from what we've seen out of the BCS schools (plus GMU). No more huge, beefy towers guarding the paint. With out-of-conference play over, Adjehi and Trent will now be going against mostly Matt Sundberg clones under the basket. 

Only one Terrier averages more than 5 boards a game. Meanwhile Baru, Wiedeman and Wiggins all average more than that. Speaking of Adjehi, he's really been coming on as of late. He had that near double-double against Coastal and really found his groove against Mason before foul trouble took him out of the game early. Wiedeman (and Willis Hall, from the bench) will emit a sigh of relief by not having to face Dahlman anymore. I expect Trent to give us his usual 11 and 8 type of performance. And then there's Mr. Wiggins, who always has good games against Woffy. They've never really had anyone who could matchup with him.

This is the first road conference game for the Cougars and they will face Furman just two days later. These types of away games are always tough but I know the coaching staff always puts an emphasis on winning the Socon games above anything else. Lawrence, Wiggins and Wiedeman were all on the floor in Chatty last year when Wofford captured their ticket to the Dance, so I hope they come out with a chip on their shoulders. Go Cougars!

Another Prediction

This one from the Mid-Major Report by Myron Medcalf on ESPN

He also picks VCU to win the Colonial and Coastal to win the Big South. Take it for whatever it's worth.