Charleston Overcomes Sloppy Play for 68-59 Win
12/4/2009 2:14:00 AM | Men's Basketball
CHARLESTON, S.C. - The College of Charleston shot 66.7 percent in the second half and 50 percent overall to overcome a sloppy game in grounding the Eagles 68-59. Georgia Southern controlled the tempo and had effectively shut down the Cougar offense in the first half, but couldn't overcome a sluggish offensive night to secure the win. The Eagles rattled the Cougars in the Carolina First Arena with solid defense, forcing 23 turnovers for the game, 10 over the College of Charleston average. Georgia Southern finished the game with 17 steals.
Ben Drayton III (St. Marys, Ga.) scored nine points in the first half and finished with 15 on the night. Willie Powers III (Gainesville, Fla.) contributed 13 from the bench and Antonio Hanson (Ft. Worth, Texas) had eight points, including two big threes in the second half.
The Cougars' Andrew Goudelock scored 14 of his game-high 19 points in the second half to key the Cougars comeback. Charleston had four players in double figure scoring with Donavan Monroe adding 16, Jeremy Simmons 10, and Willis Hall scoring eight off the bench in the second half for 12 total. Simmons led all rebounders with 13. The Cougars had a collective 11 blocks for the game.
"They made shots and we didn't," said Eagles Head Coach Charlton "C.Y." Young. "We did the right things strategically, but they have four great shooters, and they are playing at home. We forced them into 23 turnovers, but we have to be able to convert those into points for us."
The Cougars were shooting 45 percent in the first half, but their percentage plummeted as they hit only three of their 11 attempts in the last seven minutes of the first half and were held scoreless for the last four. Georgia Southern erased a seven-point Charleston lead with an 10-0 run, and took a 28-25 lead into the locker room. A layup and three by Drayton keyed the run with Drayton's three-pointer with a tenth of a second left in the half giving the Eagles the advantage.
In the second half, Georgia Southern had a five-point lead, 36-31 at the 16:46 mark when both teams went through a three-minute stretch unable to score a basket. For the next nine minutes, the teams traded baskets and watched the lead go back and forth through four ties and eight lead changes. Goudelock hit two free throws with five minutes left to put Charleston ahead 55-54. Goudelock would add five more points before the final buzzer and the Cougars would pull away with the win.
The loss snapped Georgia Southern's two-game win streak and left the Eagles still looking for their first road win of the 2009-10 season. In the second game of the road swing in Charleston, the Eagles play The Citadel at McAlister Fieldhouse Saturday. Tipoff is scheduled for 3 p.m.
All Eagles men's basketball games can be heard on the Georgia Southern Radio Network, locally in Statesboro on 102.9 FM WPMX and globally on www.GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com. The pre-game show begins 30 minutes prior to the start of the game.
