College of Charleston (10-9, 2-2)
UNC Wilmington (6-14, 0-5)
TD Arena
Tipoff at 7pm on CSS
Entering the season as mostly an unknown but a team likely in the mix at the top of the CAA standings, the Cougars find themselves in mediocrity four games into conference play. The Cougars are 2-2, trailing undefeated Delaware and Towson in the league standings. A road win against Hofstra slipped through their fingers and an inconsistent offensive effort against Towson dropped them to .500 amongst their peers.
Now CofC goes from first to worst at TD Arena as they welcome their CAA neighbor and the only winless team in conference: UNCW to Charleston. The Dub catches a lot of flack from Coug fans for it's status as an inferior coastal university school in the Carolinas, but the last thing the Cougars should be doing is taking this team lightly. The wins over poor conference mates don't come as easy in the CAA as they did in the SoCon and the home shooting woes again weigh on the minds of fans as a very real disadvantage. The Cougars need a win, but not as bad as the Seahawks - and that makes them a very dangerous team to face.
Are they any good?
Their record would have you say "no." They're the closest thing right now to a conference doormat at 0-5 in the CAA but they're not as bad as Citadel and Howard teams Charleston has already faced this year. It sounds like Wojcik is preaching to the team not to take the Seahawks lightly (after all, who wants to lose to the team 0-5 in the CAA?) by stating the Dub is a team with talented personnel and lousy consistency - which is a fair assessment. Big man Ced Williams is the guy to know in blue; a lanky 6-9 sophomore forward leading the team in points and rebounds who reminds me a lot of most-likely-related Samford Bulldog Tim Williams.
What do they do well?
Believe it or not the Seahawks start a five man unit that is bigger than the Cougs and will challenge them on the boards and defensively. They get quite a few blocks and offensive putbacks because of this advantage. Buzz Peterson's (remember him from the App State days?) team also puts a lot of pressure on a defense behind PG Chris Dixon, who will push the ball and keep the Cougars on their heels. This will be a game where we'll probably feel fortunate to have AT and Stitt in the starting lineup to try and prevent Adjehi and Willis from getting burned with fouls in the paint.
What do they struggle with?
Statistically UNCW is the most inefficient offensive team in the CAA. They're dead last in the league in field goal percentage from three (just 24.1%) and every where else on the court (40% per game). That does not bode well going against a Wojcik team that prides themselves on defense but it does seem like every time CofC "gives" an opponent an outside shot that they decide to live with if hit, the Cougars get burned (<cough> Miami <cough). Hopefully that does not happen.
X-Factor
The UNC Wilmington bench is a big X-factor. The inconsistency of the reserves is a big reason why the offense is so out of whack. Against Towson the non-starters put up a big fat goose egg in points. Other nights they can get a hot streak from Tanner Milson (their best shooter) or backup guard Ben Eblen. Williams and Dixon lead this team - Peterson likely prays neither gets into foul trouble, but if they both play well and the team gets a boost off the bench the Cougars could be looking at a deficit.
Matchup to watch for
Cedrick Williams and Chuck Ogbodo versus Adjehi Baru and Willis Hall. Baru is going to be matched up size-for-size with Williams, Hall will be at a disadvantage going against a taller player with a penchant for defense. Worst case scenario involves some combination of foul trouble or turnovers from the Cougar bigs being harassed by these two and the rest of the team being unable to pick up the slack. The overall length of UNCW has me fearing another Towson-like scenario in which Ogdobo can simultaneously help double Baru and close out on Willis' jumpers. If the Seahawks want a battle of height we can give them a battle of height! Unleash the Ginja Ninja!
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