After a summer of speculation and anticipation, the College of Charleston finally announced the 2012-2013 men's basketball schedule. The sports marketing department was quick to tab Coach Wojcik's first season as possibly the greatest home schedule in program history and to everyones credit they may have a point. With the exception of a certain non-DI stinker, there's a whole lot to like about not only the home games but the level of competition throughout the year. Let's take a look at some of the big games.
November 9: Towson @ TD Arena
If we do make the leap to the greener pastures of the CAA we'll see a lot more of Towson University. This home and season opener could be a nice way to warm up the guys because, if you hadn't heard, the Tigers were pretty bad last year. The CAA doormat has no where to go but up and the Cougars will still be integrating a whole new offensive and defensive scheme under Wojcik. That being said, this should be an easy enough victory with the TD crowd behind the Cougs.
November 15-18: Charleston Classic @ TD Arena
Great, great exposure for the College and the Cougars. Ever since the last time the Cougars played in ESPN's tournament hosted at TD Arena in 2008, the Charleston Classic has steadily increased in prominence. This year's field is pretty stacked with preseason #11 Baylor and the last-second entry of Murray State. The only guaranteed game right now for the Cougars is St. Johns on Thursday the 15th at 5pm. Hosting a Big East team (or two) is a big deal for any mid-major program and the Cougs could definitely make some noise in their own backyard if the Red Storm are looking past Day One's opponent. Coach Wojcik played in this very tournament last year with Tulsa so there should be no excuses if the team fails to impress that weekend.
November 24: Baylor @ Ferrell Center, Waco TX
Gone are Perry Jones, Quincy Acy and Quincy Miller but Elite Eight teams like the Baylor Bears simply reload rather than rebuild. The incoming 2012 freshman class was good enough to be ranked 5th in the country and 7-footer Isaiah Austin is a name you will hear plenty of this upcoming college basketball season. Here's something that will be a recurring theme with the Cougars this year: a team with a senior point guard and the ability to rebound always has a punchers chance against the big boys. Who knows, maybe we'll get to a championship game against Baylor in the Charleston Classic and play them twice in one season. How's that for mid-major scheduling?!
November 28: Charleston Southern @ North Charleston Coliseum
The Buccaneers were a thorn in our side last year and they're only getting better. Thanks for bailing us out last year Antwaine.
December 4: Louisville @ TD Arena
Oh so you like Elite Eight teams huh? How's about a 2012 Final Four team coming to Meeting Street? The circled game of the year for sure. This Louisville team could beat the 2010 UNC squad that provided the first marquee win at what is now TD Arena. Coach Pitino, Peyton Siva and the various talking heads at ESPN all expect big things from the Cardinals this year. Last season, the matchup at Yum! Arena showed the Cougars can hang around with these guys for long stretches. Throw in the development of sophomores Stitt and Baru (two guys who played huge roles in that game) and you have all the ingredients of an ESPNU worthy primetime game on John Kresse Court.
December 18: Old Dominion @ TD Arena
This was a series many fans and alumni were pushing for this summer. ODU is playing their last season in the CAA and if the Cougars are going to switch conferences, it would be nice to know we can compete with one of the consistently elite teams in the Colonial Athletic Association. Personally I would like to see us stomp the Monarchs at home because we are more or less replacing these guys if we switch leagues. Don't want those CAA fans regretting the move to bring in us Cougars.
December 29: Vermont @ Patrick Gymnasium, Burlington VT
Evan Fjeld, we barely knew ye...
February 14: Davidson @ TD Arena
The only conference game on this list. There's just something about Valentines Day basketball games at TD Arena that sets my heart aflutter. It's always a big deal when the Wildcats come to town (well, the southern part of downtown to be exact) and this game will hopefully have Socon South Division positioning on the line. Davidson is going to be really good for at least another year. By this point we'll have a better grasp of the new identity of this years team and I'm allowed to change my outlook on our chances in this one accordingly.
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