Tough Home-Road Split Greets Cougars as Season Winds Down
With just a few weeks left until the month synonymous with college hoops, conference contenders are battling each other for final positioning. Following a big weekend that saw the Cougars move into a tie for first place, the boys in maroon can’t afford to soak in their new standing. Not with the 20-win plateau on the line, and not with two of the league’s top teams on the schedule.
College of Charleston (19–6, 10–2)
Northeastern (13–11, 6–6)
Thursday, February 9
TD Arena
The Northeastern Huskies were once the darlings of the Colonial Athletic Association. Led by Player of the Year favorite T.J. Williams, Bill Coen’s squad entered conference play with the league’s best win — at Michigan State. They were dominant during a 5–0 start to CAA play, but fell off a cliff after ceding the undefeated mark to CofC and UNCW. Since then the Huskies have lost six of their last seven contests, including a 1–5 mark on the road.
There are issues across the board, but a big part of the recent slide has been the offense losing it’s bite. Williams is good for 20 a night, and senior grad transfer Alex Murphy (formerly of Duke and Florida) is the team’s versatile Robin. But multiple starters, including Williams, have been in and out of the lineup due to injuries and Coach Coen cites the inconsistency as a primary cause of the lost chemistry.
Compounding things, the defense has been porous. Towson and JMU both topped 70 points against NU, and William & Mary torched them for 94 last week. They’re vulnerable to dribble drives, which should bode well for Charleston.
If Williams is a go, the Huskies are as tough a guard as any in the CAA. Even without him, they are deadly from three (look for CAA Rookie of the Week Bolden Brace on the perimeter) and super athletic. The Cougars should not take the sleep on a down opponent, and hopefully keep a chip on their shoulder. The Huskies robbed CofC of a much-coveted first round bye in the 2016 CAA Tournament — a death knell that had them face a rested UNCW the next day for elimination. The Cougs are in better shape this year, but can’t afford to lose any home games.
William & Mary (13–10, 7–5)
College of Charleston (19–6, 10–2)
Saturday, February 11
Kaplan Arena, Williamsburg, VA
This game scares the hell out of me. Out of the six remaining games on Charleston’s schedule, this one presents the most cause for anxiety.
If Northeastern is plummeting and grasping for answers, William & Mary is a rocket ship blasting through the stratosphere right now. The Tribe has won four of its last five, and seemingly flipped the switch on their once-vaunted offense.
Preseason All-CAA forward Omar Prewitt has rediscovered his shooting stroke and paired with Daniel Dixon to form the league’s most potent backcourt duo. Dixon, who played lead while Prewitt built momentum, has been deadly as of late. He’s averaging 26.2 points per contest during the streak while his team has put up 92 a game.
William & Mary is undefeated at home in conference play, and did Charleston an immense solid by handing UNCW their first league loss. But best of all, the school is celebrating some sort of novelty event when CofC comes to Virginia. The house will be packed for an atmosphere resembling the one that suffocated the Seahawks.
This team is a matchup issue for Charleston because the offense is so refined. Even without Dixon, W&M had a chance to take the Cougars down at TD Arena earlier this year. The ball whips around, lots of threes are hoisted and the backdoor cuts for easy baskets never let up. Even a top defense like Charleston’s has a tough time guarding it.
If the Cougars can make it through this week unscathed, they’ll be looking great, and could even gain ground on UNCW. But I think 1–1 is more realistic. Both NU and W&M are scratching and clawing for optimal seeding at North Charleston Coliseum. Neither should be taken lightly based off their record.
