Men's Basketball Heads On the Road for a Pair Starting at High Point
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FIRST TRIP ON THE ROAD IN LEAGUE: Coastal Carolina heads on the road for the first time in Big South Conference play, opening at High Point tonight. The Chanticleers will play at Liberty on this swing on Mon. Jan. 21, followed by a road trip to defending league champion Winthrop, Sat., Jan. 26.
THE COACHES:Coastal Carolina Head Coach Cliff Ellis (Florida State, ’68) is in his first season at the helm of the Chanticleers, but is now in his 30th season as a Division I head coach with a 542-344 record and 620-354 in 32-plus seasons as a head coach overall. Last season, Coastal posted a 15-15 mark, including 7-7 in Big South Conference play, falling in the Big South Tournament Quarterfinals.
Bart Lundy (Winthrop, ’93) is in his fifth season as head coach at High Point with a 70-52 record and 185-93 in his 10th year as a head coach overall. Last season, High Point was 22-10 overall and 11-3 in the Big South, finishing second. The Panthers return 12 letterwinners and three starters from last year’s squad, including reigning Big South Player of the Year Arizona Reid.
SERIES WITH THE PANTHERS: This will be just the 21st meeting in the history between Coastal and High Point, with the series deadlocked at 10 wins each. The Panthers have a 6-3 mark at home and have won five of the last six meetings, including both contests last year, and the last three games at the Millis Center. Since High Point joined the Big South in 1998-99, the teams have gone 9-9 against each other.
COASTAL IN BIG SOUTH ROAD OPENERS: The Chants hold a 11-11 mark in their first Big South road games overall. Coastal has dropped two of its last three league road openers, defeating UNC Asheville last year after losing at VMI in 2006 and at Radford in 2005.
ON THE TUBE FOUR TIMES: Coastal Carolina's men's basketball team will make four televised appearances on SportSouth as part of the Big South Conference's package. The Chanticleers will be televised twice at Kimbel Arena when hosting Charleston Southern, Feb. 2, and Winthrop, Feb. 6, as well as twice on the road, at High Point, Jan. 19, and at Winthrop, Jan. 26.
GETTING EVERYONE INVOLVED IN THE ACT: Coastal has shown it is most effective when many get involved in the action and on the scoreboard. Of Coastal’s eight victories, the Chants have had at least four players in double-figures scoring in six of them, including a season-high five players in the dramatic buzzer-beating win over Radford, Jan. 12. The only victories where they didn’t (UNC Wilmington and Susquehanna), there were three players with double-digit scoring and at least one of them at 24 points. However in the seven losses, only twice has CCU had four players score 10 or more points in the contest.
SHOT SELECTION (AND SHOTS OVERALL) A DIFFERENCE EARLY ON: For Coastal this year, it is easy to see where the differences are. In its eight home wins, the Chanticleers have taken 463 shots (57.9 avg), as compared to 328 (54.7 avg) on the road, and hit 50.8 percent (235-of-463) in Kimbel Arena, while just shooting 43.0 percent (141-of-328) in road venues. The squad is 64-of-163 (39.3 percent) from the arc in its eight home wins while just 44-of-117 (37.6 percent) from the three-point line in the six road losses. It is even more definitive at the free throw line, as CCU has hit 120-of-169 charity attempts (71.0 percent) at home but is a dismal 54-of-96 (56.3 percent) from the stripe on the road.
FORCING THE ACTION: One other stat that jumps out in comparing wins and losses so far happens when CCU forces opponent miscues. At home, the Chants forced 147 turnovers (16.3 tpg) in its first nine games, but only caused 79 (13.2 tpg) in the six road losses.
WINNING THE BOARD BATTLE FINALLY: After losing the battle on the glass in the first four games, Coastal outrebounded their first opponent in the win over Anderson, Nov. 21. In the game, CCU trailed in the board column by five at the halftime break, 21-16, but dominated in the second half to finish ahead by seven, 41-34. Of Anderson's 18 offensive rebounds, the Chants limited them to just nine second-chance points, while getting 12 second chance points on their 16 offensive caroms.
Coastal had a nine-board advantage (42-33) in the home win over Presbyterian, Dec. 7 and a four-rebound margin (35-31) at UNCW, Dec. 9. The Chants had their best game on the glass against Susquehanna, Jan. 5, when they outboarded the Crusaders 36-26, led by senior forward Phil Wallace's career-high 11 rebounds in the win. For the year, Coastal has been outrebounded in 11 of 15 games this season, including five of the six road losses.BENCH PRODUCTION AN ASSET: For Coastal, getting some scoring punch from its bench has been a big help in the early going. In four of the eight wins, Coastal's bench has tallied at least 21 points and averaged 21.6 points a contest, with a season high of 37 against Anderson, Nov. 21. In four of the seven losses, CCU has gotten just 12 (East Carolina), 14 (Canisius), 15 (Houston) and 16 (Wright State) points from its players coming off the bench, while getting 29 in the loss at Cincinnati and 32 at UNCW, an average of just 20.7 points a game.
GETTING TO THE LINE: Since the forced change in the starting lineup four games ago due to the season-ending injury to Joseph Harris, the Chanticleers' new "small ball" offense has led to more trips to the free throw line. After going to the charity stripe an average of just over 17 times a game in the first nine contests, Coastal has gone to the line 20.0 times a game in the last six, an increase of over three free throw attempts a game, going 84-of-120 (70.0 percent) in that span.
MOVING UP THE SCORING RANKS: With his two free throws in the closing seconds of the win over Wright State, Nov. 19, 2006, senior Jack Leasure became the 14th member of CCU’s 1000-Point Club, accomplishing the feat in just two years and three games. After scoring 13 points against Susquehanna, Jan. 15, he moved into second on Coastal's all-time scoring chart and 10th on the Big South list with 1,662 points, surpassing KeKe Hicks (1993-95) at 1,622. Coastal's all-time scoring leader Tony Dunkin (1989-93) finished his distinguished career with 2,151, which currently ranks third all-time in Big South Conference history.
LEASURE THE KING OF DOWNTOWN: The three-point arc has been the domain of senior guard Jack Leasure since his arrival at Coastal for the 2004-05 season and that legend grew to new heights last season. In the win over VMI, Feb. 3, 2007, Leasure hit seven threes (the second highest total in his career and fifth best in school history) and became the Coastal career three-pointer leader. Leasure surpassed KeKe Hicks (1993-95) with 275 triples and now has 356 three-pointers in his three-plus years, moving up to second and passing Scott Hartzell (1992-96) of UNC Greensboro with 309. He now only trails Doug Day (1989-93) of Radford with 401.
Leasure is also the current NCAA Division I active leader in career three-pointers per game, having hit 3.423 triples in his 104 games (356 total), currently ahead of Chris Lofton of Tennessee at 3.339 (354 threes in 106 games).
LEASURE LEADING THE CHANTS: Senior Jack Leasure started off his final season as a Chanticleer with a bang - or several of them from downtown. In the season opener against North Greenville, Nov. 9, Leasure tallied a career-high 34 points, hitting 13-of-20 shots from the field and 8-for-13 of his attempts from the three-point arc. He also added three rebounds, five assists and three steals in the 95-75 victory at Kimbel Arena. The eight three pointers tie for the third most in school history, with the 34 points tying for the 10th-highest single-season mark.
Leasure followed it with 33 points in the win over Campbell, Nov. 13. That night, he was 9-of-12 from the floor and 6-of-9 behind the three-point line and 9-of-10 from the charity stripe. He also chipped in three rebounds, five assists and one steal in the victory.
Currently, the senior leads Coastal and ranks sixth in the league at 15.9 points per game while hitting on 49.1 percent (82-of-167) of his shots from the floor (ninth in the league) and a league-best 48.7 percent (56-of-115 - 13th in the nation) of his attempts from the three-point arc.SISINNI TAKING THE REINS: Junior guard Mario Sisinni stepped into the starting lineup six games ago for Coastal and has taken control of the offense. During those six games, Coastal has posted a 4-2 mark while Sisinni has averaged 6.5 points and 4.7 assists per game while only turning the ball over 1.5 times per game (a solid 3.1 assist-to-turnover ratio).
WALLACE DOUBLING UP: Senior forward Phil Wallace had the best game of his Coastal career against Susquehanna, Jan. 5. Wallace posted career highs of 17 points (6-of-8 from the floor, 5-of-5 from the free throw line) and 11 rebounds for his first Coastal double-double.
Wallace now ranks second for CCU and 20th in the league at 4.5 boards per game, spurred by 31 rebounds in the last four contests. RICHARDSON ON THE RIGHT FOOT: Senior guard Everage Richardson got going on the right foot, making an impact coming off the bench. In the opener against North Greenville, Nov. 9, Richardson tallied a career-high tying 16 points, going 7-of-9 from the field, along with grabbing six boards, a new career best. He followed it up with 12 points and four rebounds in the home victory over Campbell, Nov. 13.
He also put together a career best in his effort against Anderson, Nov. 21, posting career-highs of 17 points, going 8-for-14 from the field, and four steals, while also chipping in two assists and his first blocked shot at Coastal.
After averaging just 7.0 points a game in the first four this season, Richardson has stepped up his game on the offensive end of the floor even more over the last eight contests. He has averaged 20.1 points a contest the last eight, including scoring in double figures in eight straight and nine of the last 10 games. He surpassed his best point total at UNC Wilmington, Dec. 9, tallying a career-best 19 points to lead Coastal's effort. He then followed it up with new career-highs of 27 points and seven rebounds in the home victory over UNCW, Dec. 19.
Richardson is now second on the team at 14.7 points per game (12th in the league) on 53.2 percent (92-of-173) shooting from the field (fourth in the Big South), while also chipping in 3.9 rebounds and 2.1 steals (fourth in the conference and 66th in the nation) per contest.FEELING THE BREEZE BLOW: Freshman Anthony Breeze made sure he was felt in the game at Cincinnati, Nov. 16. The Greenville, S.C. native came off the bench and led Coastal with a season-best 25 points, including going 9-of-9 from the field and 7-of-13 from the free throw line. He added five rebounds in his 23 minutes of play. The 25 points was the most by a Coastal freshman since current senior Jack Leasure scored 25 points at Winthrop in the 2005 Advance Auto Parts Big South Conference Quarterfinals.
Breeze got his first collegiate start against Anderson, Nov. 21, and responded with 15 points, four boards and two blocked shots. He was impressive shooting, going 6-for-9 from the floor, including one monster dunk with an AU player hanging on his arms, and was also 3-of-3 from the charity stripe.
In the win over UNC Wilmington, Dec. 19, Breeze tallied 24 points on 8-of-12 shooting and 8-of-11 from the free throw line. He also added eight rebounds, tying his career best, in 26 minutes of action. Breeze has been a solid addition to the lineup and stepped up with the recent loss of Joseph Harris to a season-ending injury. Breeze is currently third on the team in scoring (24th in Big South) at 10.9 points per game and leads in rebounds at 4.8 boards a contest (14th in the league) while playing 20.8 minutes a game. Breeze was limited to just three points in 14 minutes at East Carolina, Jan. 2, as well as five points in just 16 minutes against Susquehanna, Jan. 5, due to a sprained ankle. However, he put together 10 points, including 8-of-8 at the free throw line, six rebounds and a career-best three rebounds in the win over Radford, Jan. 12.
LEASURE NAMED TO LOWE'S SENIOR CLASS AWARD CANDIDATE LIST: Senior guard Jack Leasure has been named an official candidate for the 2007-08 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award, the first male ever named to the list for Coastal Carolina and the only men's player on the list from the Big South Conference. The nation’s top 30 senior male and female college basketball players who exemplify a total student-athlete were announced as the official candidates for the 2007-08 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award.
The award – presented annually to the NCAA Division I Student-Athlete of the Year in eight sports – focuses on the “Four C’s” of classroom, character, community and competition. Lowe’s, an official corporate partner of the NCAA will award the winners with trophies during the respective men’s and women’s NCAA Final Four weekends. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the award was launched during the 2001-02 season to honor the attributes of college basketball seniors who remain committed to their university and pursue the many rewards that a senior season and complete college education brings. Now in its seventh year for basketball, the award has developed into the nation’s premier tribute for college seniors. Since originating with basketball, Lowe’s has expanded the award to include a total of eight NCAA sports, of which CCU women's soccer player Ashleigh Gunning was on this year's top-30 list. From the list of 30 nominees for each gender, a national media committee will select 10 finalists for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award in January 2008. Those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot for a nationwide vote during the NCAA Tournament in March. Fan balloting will be coupled with votes from coaches and media to determine the male and female recipients.ON THE NATIONAL RANKINGS: As of Jan. 13 as a team, Coastal ranks in the top 70 of three categories in NCAA Division I basketball. CCU is 45th in field-goal percentage (47.5 percent), 59th in three-point field-goal percentage (38.6 percent) and 61st assists per game (15.7).
Individually, senior guard Jack Leasure ranks among the top 100 individuals in two areas. Leasure is 13th in three-point percentage (48.5 percent) and 17th in three-pointers per game (3.5). Senior guard Everage Richardson is also ranked 66th in steals per game (2.1) and 88th in field-goal percentage (51.9 percent).LEADING THE WAY: Leaders often do the little things that don't show up in the stats. However with senior Jack Leasure and junior Joseph Harris, when they show up as leaders in the stats, it normally means good things for the Chanticleers. Over the last 72 games, Leasure has led Coastal in scoring on 30 occasions, posting a 23-7 mark. Harris has led the Chants on the glass in 34 of those contests, with CCU having a 20-14 mark in those games as well.
J-MONEY: Senior Jack Leasure has been clutch from the three-point line in the past, but his most notable performance comes from the free-throw line in his career. Leasure is an impressive 164-for-199 (82.4 percent) in his three-plus years thus far. That is currently the second-best career free throw percentage in Coastal history.
HARRIS OUT FOR THE YEAR WITH THUMB INJURY: Junior Joseph Harris is out for the year with a torn ligament in his left thumb. He suffered the injury in the second half of the UNC Wilmington game, Dec. 9, but finished the game. He will have surgery on the thumb later this week and, due to new NCAA rules on medical redshirts, will be eligible to be medically redshirted and retain two years of eligibility, starting next season.
Harris was again asserting himself in rebounding, currently leading Coastal and ranking fifth in the conference at 7.9 rebounds a game, while chipping in 8.3 points per contest. He also has 13 blocked shots on the year, ranking fourth in the league at 1.6 blocks a game. He entered this season with nine career double-doubles (seven in 2006-07), and made it 10 after a recent outing of then season bests of 16 points and 10 rebounds at Houston, Nov. 26, and then followed it up in the next game with 14 points and a season-high 14 rebounds in the win over Presbyterian, Dec. 7, for his 11th career double-double. He also added career-highs of four blocks and six steals in the win over the Blue Hose. He had a career-best and team season-best 31 points to go with 11 boards at VMI last year, the most points tallied by a CCU player during the 2006-07 season. He led the team (for the second straight year -- his first two at CCU) and was fifth in the Big South at 7.7 boards per contest and ranked fourth the squad at 8.2 points per game. He improved the scoring average in league play with 9.1 points in 14 conference games. He at least shared for team-high honors in rebounding in 20 of the 30 Coastal games last year.BACK-TO-BACK FOR THE FIRST TIME IN A LONG TIME: Senior guard Jack Leasure has opened the scoring in style, posting the first back-to-back 30-point games since 1994-95, when guard KeKe Hicks scored 33 against Towson State (1-14-95) and 36 against Maryland-Baltimore County (1-16-95). In fact, Hicks did it twice that season, tallying 40 at #22 Georgia Tech (11-28-94) and 32 against Charlotte (12-1-94) earlier in the year.
LEASURE GETTING BACK IN HIS ZONE: After ending the 2005-06 season ranked second in the nation in three-pointers at 4.2 per game, senior Jack Leasure returned to play solid and earn Second Team All-Big South honors last year as a junior. He led the team and ranked eighth in the league in scoring at 15.6 points per game. He was also fourth in three-point field goal percentage (.372), third in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.83), second in three pointers made (3.00/g) and ninth in assists (3.60/g).
Leasure has also ranked among the top 30 in the nation in three-point field goals made in each of his three seasons.BREEZE NAMED BIG SOUTH FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK: CCU freshman Anthony Breeze received New Balance Freshman of the Week honors for games played Nov. 12-18, it was announced by the League office.
Breeze averaged 16.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and was 12-of-14 from the field in two games last week for the Chanticleers. At Cincinnati, Breeze went 9-of-9 from the floor and finished with a career-high 25 points, the most by a CCU freshman since 2003-04 when Jack Leasure did it against Winthrop in the 2004 Big South Quarterfinals. He also grabbed five rebounds against the Bearcats. Earlier in the week in Coastal’s victory over Campbell, Breeze scored eight points, grabbed six rebounds and tallied two assists.
NON-CONFERENCE ROAD STRUGGLES CONTINUE: Coastal Carolina can't quite get over the top on the road in non-conference play. The Chanticleers haven't won a non-conference road tilt since Nov. 22, 2003 at Marist, defeating the host Red Foxes, 74-70, in the opening game of the season and opening round of the Marist Classic. Since then, CCU has had 27 straight non-conference road losses, including all six this season.
KIMBEL HAS ITS ADVANTAGES: Coastal Carolina's Kimbel Arena may seat just over 1,000 fans, but it has been large for the Chanticleers the last six seasons. Coastal is 31-4 (88.6 percent) since the start of the 2002-03 season in non-conference games at Kimbel, including winning the last 20 non-conference tilts in the home gym. CCU had a stellar 14-1 overall record at home in 2005-06, the most home victories since the program went Division I for the 1985-86 season. CCU is also 57-20 (74.0 percent) overall at the Conway campus venue in the last five-plus years.
THE PRESEASON POLL HAD CCU IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PACK: Coastal Carolina was picked to finish fourth in the Big South Conference this season by the league's head coaches, sports information directors and selected media, as announced at the 2007 Big South Basketball Media Days in Concord, N.C. High Point was a slim favorite to take home the crown over two-time defending champion Winthrop with VMI picked third. Rounding out the poll was UNC Asheville, Liberty, Charleston Southern and Radford.
However, much is unknown in the league due to coaching changes. Of the eight schools in the league, four of them (Coastal - Cliff Ellis, Winthrop - Randy Peele, Liberty - Ritchie McKay and Radford - Brad Greenberg) have new head coaches this season.
LIVE ON THE RADIO AND THE WEB: Coastal Carolina men's basketball will be broadcast live on "The Team", 93.9 FM, 93.7 FM and 1050 AM in the Conway/Myrtle Beach area, as well as on the Internet at www.GoCCUSports.com. Matt Hogue returns for his 11th year as "Voice of the Chanticleers". In addition, there will be Live Game Stats of all CCU home basketball games on the Internet, as well as Live Video Streaming of all home basketball games available for purchase on "The Edge" on www.bigsouthsports.com.
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