CCU

MEN'S HOOPS WINS AT WINTHROP, 64-50

           

MEN'S HOOPS WINS AT WINTHROP, 64-50

ROCK HILL, S.C. -- Coastal Carolina snapped a five-game losing streak at Winthrop Coliseum dating back to the 1996-97 season with a 64-50 win over host Winthrop, Jan. 8. With the victory, just the second over the Eagles in the last 10 meetings, the Chanticleers move to 8-5 and 1-0 in Big South Conference play, while Winthrop dropped to 7-7 and 1-2 in league play.

The game was tight early on, as CCU took the initial lead before the game was tied at 12 with just under seven minutes gone in the game. Winthrop took just two leads in the game, at 14-13 and then at 21-19 with 8:02 to play in the first half. However, the Chants made their push late in the half, outscoring the Eagles 15-4 the rest of the way, including sophomore guard Kelvin Coggins off-balance shot off senior forward Derrick Robinson's full-court pass as time expired, gave Coastal a 34-25 halftime advantage.

Winthrop came out hot in the second half, going on a 9-3 run to cut the lead to 37-34 just 2:27 into the final period and were down three at 40-37 with 12:38 to play. However, the Chanticleers would take over from here. Coastal went on a 11-3 run, sparked by senior forward Torrey Butler's three field goals, including a three-pointer and a conventional three-point play, to take a 51-40 lead. Winthrop would cut it to six, but freshman guard Colin Stevens three-pointer and sophomore forward Clint Nagel's layup put the game out of reach with 3:05 to play, as CCU was up 60-49.

The stats tell the story of the game, as Coastal led all key categories. The Chants outshot Winthrop, 47.3 percent to 42.3 percent and outrebounded the hosts, 37-25. Coastal also was six of 13 from the arc, while the Eagles hit just three of 10.

Butler finished with a game-high 21 points, while junior forward E.J. Gallup added 12 and Stevens posted a career-high 10 points. Nagel led all players on the glass with a career-high nine rebounds and added four points. Winthrop was led by Josh Grant with 14 points, while Sheldon Bailey was the only other Eagle in double figures with 10.

Coastal has now won four of its last five and heads to High Point to take on the Panthers, Sat., Nov. 11 at 2 p.m. The Chants wrap up the three-game Big South Conference road trip at Elon, Mon., Nov. 13 at 7 p.m.