Cougars to Take On George Mason in CBI Tuesday

    

*I never run out of excuses to show this video

College of Charleston (24-10, 14-4)

George Mason (18-14, 10-8)

TD Arena

Tipoff at 7 pm on AXS TV?

The 2012-2013 basketball season will carry on for the Cougars as they accept a bid from the other, other postseason tournament: the College Basketball Invitational. In a first round match-up set for Tuesday night at TD Arena, CofC will face future CAA rival George Mason. 

It's not glamorous or necessarily fan pleasing, but if you have an opportunity to play in the postseason, most of the time you should take it. In CofC's case, Stitt could use the extra reps at point guard before he takes over full-time next season, Wiedeman can continue to get healthier on both ankles and guys like Adjehi, Anthony Thomas and Nori can all get more games in before their roles increase next season. A pretty good example Coach Wojcik used as a team that used the CBI to their advantage was VCU. The Rams accepted a bid, won the tournament and used the experience as a jumping off point to their Final Four appearance the next year.

Because of the high number of automatic bids in this year's NIT and the overall parity of college basketball this year, the 2013 CBI field is actually pretty solid. Think of it this way, if the Cougars played in a pre-season tournament with these teams I don't think anyone would complain about the strength of the field. You can view the entire bracket here. 

Texas, who the Cougars could meet in the second round, had a disappointing season but they will have sophomore guard Myck Kabongo, who was suspended the first 23 games of the season. Another team that was unable to live up to high expectations is on the other side of the bracket. Lehigh, with CJ McCollum, is a Top 25 team. Without their NBA-bound point guard the Mountain Hawks struggled throughout the Patriot League season. McCollum was a maybe for the conference tournament but did not play, it's still unclear if he'll suit up for the CBI. Rounding out the bracket there's a team the Cougars already beat this year (Vermont), perennially strong teams in Richmond and Purdue, and maybe the juiciest matchup of all- the possibility of Coach Wojcik versus Tulsa in the Championship Game.

It's a quick turnaround for the Cougars and unfortunately they have to play this game at home (I kid...kind of). Being from northern Virginia I'd love to give the Mason Nation something else to whine about this season and give them an early preview of what's to come next year. In order to win the Cougars are going to need to slow down Sherrod Wright. Mason's offense depends on Wright getting his points so stopping him is critical. Unfortunately, at 6-4 and 196 lbs, he's going to be a tougher matchup for Stitt and Thomas than most wing players in the SoCon.

Last year the Patriots put a whooping on the Cougars inside TD Arena. It was the first loss to the Patriots in CofC's history. Time to get some revenge. Go Cougars.