Men's Basketball Ends Road Swing at Radford Monday Night
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Chants End Three-Game Trip Monday at Radford
The Coastal Carolina University men’s basketball team (10-14, 4-8 Big South), fresh off a last-second victory over High Point, ends its three-game road trip Monday, Feb. 9 at Radford (13-10, 10-2 Big South). Game time is at 7 p.m., in the newly renovated Dedmon Center in Radford, Va. The game can be heard on THE TEAM 93.9 FM in Myrtle Beach with Matt Hogue on the call. The game also will be video streamed on THE EDGE at www.BigSouthSports.com. Coastal Carolina snapped a three-game losing streak and a seven-game conference road losing streak Saturday night in the 70-68 win over the Panthers.
A Coastal Carolina Win Would...
- Give Head Coach Cliff Ellis his 636th career win and his 24th with the Chanticleers.
- Give Coastal Carolina a two-game winning streak overall and on the road.
- Give Coastal Carolina a two-game winning streak at Radford. The Chants won last year’s meeting in Radford 65-61.
- Move Coastal Carolina into a tie with Winthrop for seventh place in the Big South standings.
Storylines
- Coastal Carolina runs into the gauntlet of the Big South schedule the next three games. Coastal Carolina is at Radford tonight and then hosts VMI and Liberty next weekend. Those three teams are a combined 49-22 overall and 28-9 in Big South play.
- Redshirt junior Joseph Harris and Radford’s Art Parakhouski are the top two rebounders in the Big South conference. Parakhouski is averaging 10.6 boards while Harris is right behind him at 10.5. Both players are also close in points per game, with Parakhouski at 14.7 and Harris at 14.5.
- Radford is leading the Big South in rebounding margin (+4.5), field-goal percentage defense (395)and three-point field goal percentage defense (.308) entering tonight’s game.
Scouting Radford
The Highlanders are tied with VMi for the top spot in the Big South. Radford is coming off a 78-61 win over Presbyterian Saturday night. Art Parakhouski had 21 points, while Phillip Martin had a career-high 16 points. Joey Lynch-Flohr added 13 points and is averaging 13.9 points a contest.
Series vs. Radford
Radford leads the overall series 32-16 and are 18-6 against Coastal Carolina in Radford. The Highlanders won the first game in Conway 68-52 Jan. 5. Redshirt junior Joseph Harris (Lejeune, N.C./Lejeune) had 25 points on 11-of-13 shooting, while sophomore Anthony Breeze (Greenville, S.C./Greenville) added six rebounds. Harris is averaging 10.8 points in five career games against the Highlanders.
Moore Has First-Half Barrage in High Point Win
Freshman Dexter Moore (Bluefield, W. Va./Hargrave Military) had 19 first-half points on his way to a career-high 23-point night in the 70-68 win over High Point Feb. 7. Moore was 7-of-10 from the floor and 5-of-8 from three-point range in the first 20 minutes. Moore also upped his scoring average from 4.3 to 5.2 points per game.
Sisinni From Three For the Win
Senior Mario Sisinni (Orlando, Fla./Dr. Phillips) hit the game-winning three-pointer with eight seconds remaining to give Coastal Carolina the 70-68 win over High Point Feb. 7. It was Sisinni’s second career game-winning bucket, as his layup beat Radford at home last season 76-75. It also was Coastal Carolina first win in seven tries in a game decided by five points or less.
Sisinni Goes For Career Night Against Presbyterian
Senior Mario Sisinni (Orlando, Fla./Dr. Phillips) was 12-of-14 from the floor, 5-of-7 from three-point range and 5-of-9 from the free-throw line, scoring a career-high 34 points in the 65-62 loss to Presbyterian Feb. 4. Sisinni scored 26 points in the second half and had the final eight points for the Chants in the last 47 seconds. Sisinni’s previous high was 20 points at VMI Jan. 12 and his scoring average moved up from 9.2 to 10.2 points a game.
Sisinni Moves Into Top-10 List in Assists
Senior Mario Sisinni (Orlando, Fla./Dr. Phillips) had four assists in the 71-69 loss to Charleston Southern Jan. 31. That gave him 261 assists for his career, moving him past Greg Smith (1994-97) for 10th place on Coastal Carolina’s all-time list. Sisinni becomes the third Chant this decade to move into the top-10 list (Alvin Green and Jack Leasure) and needs 14 more assists to move into ninth place.
Sexton Sizzling in Gardner-Webb Game
Senior Steven Sexton (Monticello, Ky./Wayne County) was on fire in the 79-74 loss to Gardner-Webb Jan. 28. Sexton scored the Chants first 14 points, was 8-of-14 from the field, 6-of-12 from three-point range and 3-of-4 from the free-throw line for a career-high 25 points. Sexton also set career highs in field goals made and attempted and three-point field goals made and attempted.
Chants Lights Out in Winthrop Win
Coastal Carolina shot a season-high 59.5 percent in its 78-69 win over Winthrop Jan. 24. The Chants shot a blistering 61.9 percent in the second half with redshirt junior Joseph Harris (Lejeune, N.C./Lejeune) going 7-of-11 from the field. Junior Mario Edwards (Massillon, Ohio/Chipola J.C.) was 5-of-6 from the floor for 11 points. The last time the Chants shot that well in a game was Jan. 16, 2007 in a 99-97 win over VMI. Coastal Carolina shot 60.7 percent in that win.
Harris in Select Company
Redshirt junior Joseph Harris (Lejeune, N.C./Lejeune) is now one of seven players in Big South history to record 600 rebounds, 100 steals and 100 blocked shots after recording a block in the 78-69 win over Winthrop Jan. 24. Harris is the only Chanticleer to accomplish this feat and the first in the Big South since Chris Oliver of Radford (2003-07).
Breeze a Beast in UNCA Win
Sophomore Anthony Breeze (Greenville, S.C./Greenville) scored 15 points and added a career-high 15 rebounds in the 64-57 win over UNC Asheville Jan. 19. Breeze had eight offensive rebounds and was 6-of-9 from the field. The sophomore is averaging 10.8 points and 5.9 rebounds a game.
Harris Hosts Block Party
Redshirt junior Joseph Harris (Lejeune, N.C./Lejeune) is now second in career blocked shots in Coastal Carolina history. Harris has 103 blocks in his career after having a blocked shot against High Point. The blocked shots record is 112, set by DeWayne Cheatam from 1987-91. Harris also is fifth in career rebounds with 707 and is first in field-goal percentage (.586).
Rebounds the Story at Gardner-Webb
The Chanticleers were outrebounded 44-32 at Gardner-Webb Jan. 17. Redshirt junior Joseph Harris (Lejeune, N.C./Lejeune) led the team with 11, but the next highest Chant had three. Gardner-Webb’s Joshua Henley had 18 rebounds, while the Bulldogs had 20 offensive boards.
Turnovers Hurt Chants in Loss to Liberty
Coastal Carolina had 19 turnovers, 14 in the second half, in the 68-55 loss to Liberty Jan. 12. The Chanticleers led by as much as eight points in the first half, while committing only three turnovers in the first 19 minutes. Liberty went on a 13-2 run, helped by two Chants turnovers in the final minute, then the Chants had 10 turnovers in the final 10 minutes while being outscored 16-9.
Bench Vital to Chants This Season
Coastal Carolina’s bench has outscored its opponents’ bench 543-424 after 23 games this season, including scoring 40 points in the 56-53 overtime loss to Presbyterian Dec. 3. Sophomore Anthony Breeze (Greenville, S.C./Greenville) had 18 points off the bench, while junior Mario Edwards (Massillon, Ohio/Chipola J.C.) added seven points. Coastal Carolina is averaging 22.6 points per game off the bench.
Another Double-Double for Harris
Redshirt junior Joseph Harris (Lejeune, N.C./Lejeune) recorded his eighth double-double on the year in the 68-55 loss to Liberty Jan. 12. Harris had 19 points and 11 rebounds in recording his second straight double-digit rebounding performance and his sixth straight double-digit scoring output. Harris is averaging 14.5 points a game.
VMI Game News and Notes
As is the case in most games against VMI, the Chanticleers had plenty of interesting notes that came out of the 103-102 loss against the Keydets...Coastal Carolina came into the game averaging 68.1 points per game as the Chanticleers scored 34 points above its season mark... Coastal Carolina’s 56 second-half points was four more than it had in the whole game vs. Radford Jan. 5... The Chanticleers set or tied 14 career highs in the game, including senior Mario Sisinni’s (Orlando, Fla./Dr. Phillips) 20 points and redshirt junior Joseph Harris’ (Lejeune, N.C./Lejeune) 16 rebounds... Coastal Carolina had 58 points in the paint and 31 points from its bench... The 29 assists by the Chants were just three off a school record, set Dec. 28, 2005 against Ohio Valley... Coastal Carolina has now averaged 98.4 points in its last five contests against the Keydets... Coastal Carolina set season highs in points, field goals attempted and made, rebounds and assists.
Harris Named Big South Co-Player of the Week
Coastal Carolina junior forward Joseph Harris (Lejeune, N.C./Leje
une) and VMI senior guard Chavis Holmes (Charlotte, N.C.) were named the Big South Conference Choice Hotels Men’s Basketball Co-Player of the Week for games played Dec. 22-Jan. 4, it was announced by the Conference office.
Harris averaged 13.7 points and 11.7 rebounds in three wins, helping the Chanticleers improve to 7-7 on the season. He posted a double-double in each game and became the 28th player in Big South history to pull down 600 career rebounds. Harris started the week by scoring 11 points and adding 12 rebounds and four assists in a 63-55 win over East Carolina, then added 13 points and 11 boards in a victory over Emmanuel College. He concluded the week with 17 points and 12 rebounds in a Big South win over High Point. Harris, who also had two steals in each game, was 17-of-27 from the floor ( .630) and averaged 4.7 offensive rebounds, 2.3 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.3 blocked shots.
Sexton Goes for Career High In High Point Win
Senior Steven Sexton (Monticello, Ky./Wayne County) had a career-high 22 points in the 82-69 win over High Point Jan. 3. The senior was 6-of-12 from the floor, 4-of-9 from three-point range and a perfect 6-of-6 from the free-throw line. He beat his previous high of 18, set Dec. 13 against Southern Virginia.
Sisinni Perfect From the Charity Stripe
Senior Mario Sisinni (Orlando, Fla./Dr. Phillips) was a perfect 8-of-8 from the free-throw line in Coastal Carolina’s 63-55 win over East Carolina Dec. 28. Sisinni scored 15 points, had five rebounds and two assists in the win. He set career highs in free-throw makes and attempts and is now 49-of-61 (80.3 percent) from the line this season.
Harris, Breeze Double Up The Boards
Redshirt junior Joseph Harris (Lejeune, N.C./Lejeune) and sophomore Anthony Breeze (Greenville, S.C./Greenville) had 12 and 11 rebounds, respectively, in the 63-55 win over East Carolina Dec. 28. Harris earned his fourth double-double of the year while Breeze had a season high in rebounds and was one carom away from tying a career high. Harris currently is second in the Big South in rebounding (10.5).
Rebounding a Big Key In Georgia State Win
Coastal Carolina outrebounded Georgia State 38-27 in the 69-52 win over the Panthers Dec. 20. The Chants limited Georgia State to just three offensive rebounds in the first half, while sophomore Anthony Breeze (Greenville, S.C./Greenville) led the Chants with nine caroms.
Sisinni Goes for a Career High in Georgia State Win
Senior Mario Sisinni (Orlando, Fla./Dr. Phillips) scored a career-high 17 points in the 69-52 win over Georgia State Dec. 20. He hit three three-pointers and was 4-of-5 from the free-throw line in the win over the Panthers. He also had a season high with five field goals and upped his season average to 6.5 points per game.
Edwards Perfect on Weekend
In Coastal Carolina’s two wins over Southern Virginia and Virginia-Wise, junior Mario Edwards (Massillon, Ohio/Chipola J.C.) was a perfect 11-of-11 from the field. This included going 7-of-7 from three-point range. Edwards had 23 points in the Virginia-Wise win and added seven rebounds and three assists. He is averaging 7.7 points and 3.5 rebounds a game.
Pack on Track
Redshirt freshman Jon Pack (Dallas, Ga./East Paulding) was 6-of-7 from the floor and 3-of-5 from the line for a career-high 15 points in the 90-51 win over Virginia-Wise Dec. 14. Pack also had six rebounds on the game after grabbing a career-high nine against Southern Virginia. Pack is averaging 3.2 points and 3.3 rebounds a contest.
Sexton Hits Threes and Dishes Rock in SVU Win
Senior Steven Sexton (Monticello, Ky./Wayne County) scored a career-high 18 points and tied a career-high with six assists in the 89-59 win over Southern Virginia Dec. 13. Sexton was 5-of-9 from three-point range and 3-of-4 from the free-throw line in 27 minutes of action. He also dished out six assists, which was a team high. Sexton is now averaging 9.3 points and 1.7 rebounds a game.
Chants Go in Extra Time For Second Time
Coastal Carolina is now 1-1 in overtime games this season after falling to Presbyterian 56-53. Earlier in the year, Coastal Carolina defeated Western Illinois 69-60 in overtime. Coastal Carolina is 2-1 in overtime under Head Coach Cliff Ellis and is 23-18 in school history in extra frames.
Breeze Goes Global
Sophomore Anthony Breeze (Greenville, S.C./Greenville) was named to the All-Tournament Team at the Global Sports Classic in Las Vegas, Nev. Breeze averaged 12.0 points and 7.8 rebounds in the four tournament games. He scored nine points in the last 2:14 of regulation and overtime of the 69-60 win over Western Illinois. His tip-in with two seconds left sent the game into overtime against the Leathernecks. Breeze led the Chanticleers with 15 points against North Carolina A&T. Florida State’s Toney Douglas was named the Most Valuable Player of the Global Sports Classic.
Harris Stuffs Stat Sheet in Western Illinois Win
Redshirt junior Joseph Harris (Lejeune, N.C./Lejeune) had a season-high 27 points and made it a double-double with 13 rebounds in the 69-60 overtime win over Western Illinois Nov. 28. Harris was 12-of-16 from the floor and had three steals and two blocked shots on the night. Sixteen of Harris’ 27 came in the first half as he helped the Chants to a then-season high 55.8 percent from the field in the win. His third rebound of the game also earned Harris his 500th career rebound, becoming just the 49th player in Big South history to pull down 500 career caroms.
Comeback Kids
Coastal Carolina was trailing by 10 points with 7:06 remaining in regulation against Western Illinois, but the Chants hit 6-of-9 field goals in those last seven minutes and sent the game into overtime, where the Chants would take the 69-60 win. A big reason for the comeback was sophomore Anthony Breeze (Greenville, S.C./Greenville), who had nine of his 14 points in the last 2:14 of regulation and in overtime. His tip-in with two seconds left sent the game into overtime, and he scored five points in the extra session.
Chants Off to Good Starts in Global Sports Classic
Coastal Carolina has had good starts in its losses to Florida State and Cincinnati. Against the Seminoles, Coastal Caroilna built a 15-point lead at the 8:35 mark of the first half and led most of the first half. Coastal Carolina shot 51.7 percent in the first half against FSU. Then against Cincinnati, Coastal Carolina had a six-point lead eight minutes in and shot 53.3 percent from the floor in the first 20 minutes.
Ellis High On Active Division I Career Wins List
Head Coach Cliff Ellis is 12th in Division I wins by an active coach. Here is a list of the top 15 active coaches in Division I wins as of Feb. 7, 2009.
1. Mike Krzyzewski (Duke)............ 823
2. Jim Calhoun (Connecticut)....... 796
3. Jim Boeheim (Syracuse)........... 789
4. Bob Huggins (W. Virginia)........ 632
5. Tom Penders (Houston)............ 622
6. Gary Williams (Maryland).......... 618
7. Homer Drew (Valparaiso)......... 591
8. Roy Williams (N. Carolina)....... 581
9. Bo Ryan (Wisconsin)................. 570
10. Mike Montgomery (Cal)........... 565
11. Ben Braun (Rice)...................... 56312. Cliff Ellis (Coastal Carolina)..... 557
13. Pat Douglass (UC Irvine)....... 555 Larry Hunter (W. Carolina).... 555 Rick Byrd (Belmont)................ 555
Coastal Carolina Shows Range In FSU Game
The Chanticleers shot 11-of-22 from three-point range in the 82-70 loss to Florida State Nov. 22. Junior Mario Edwards (Massillon, Ohio/Chipola J.C.) and freshman Dexter Moore (Bluefield, W. Va./Hargrave Military) had four three-pointers apiece, while senior Mario Sisinni (Orlando, Fla./Dr. Phillips) had two triples for the Chants. Coastal Carolina now is shooting 33.6 percent from behind the arc this year.
Welcome to Chant Basketball for Seven Players
There are seven players on the roster who are newcomers on the 2008-09 squad. Redshirt freshman Jon Pack (Dallas, Ga./East Paulding) redshirted last season and has had a year of pracitce in Coach Ellis’ system. Junior Mario Edwards (Massillon, Ohio/Washington (Chipola J.C.)) helped Chipola Junior College to a 68-5 record in his two years with the Indians. Freshmen Dexter Moore (Bluefield, W. Va./Bluefield (Hargrave Military)) and Darius Steger (Guntersville, Ala./Guntersville) will both vie tor time at point guard. Moore helped Hargrave to a Post-Graduate National Championship, while Steger was a Class 4A All-State First Team in Alabama. Freshman Sam McLaurin (Havana, Fla./East Gadsden) was the Big Bend Player of the Year last season for East Gadsden High School. Freshman Marcus Macellari (South Bend, Ind./St. Joseph’s) was a First Team selection by the South Bend Tribune. Junior Marshawn Martin (Columbia, S.C./Richland Northeast) made the team after walking on in the fall and will also see time at point guard.
Breeze Comes Back from All-Freshman Performance
Sophomore Anthony Breeze (Greenville, S.C./Greenville) returns to the lineup this season after averaging 9.7 points and 5.3 rebounds in his rookie campaign for the Chanticleers. He was named to the All-Freshman Team for his efforts, becoming the 11th player in Coastal Carolina history to be named to the All-Freshman Team. Breeze was a two-time Freshman of the Week honoree and had a season-high 25 points against Cincinnati Nov. 16.
Chants Picked Eighth in Big South Preseason Poll
The Coastal Carolina University men’s basketball team has been picked to finish eighth in the Big South Conference in 2008-2009, the League announced Oct. 14 in its annual Basketball Media Day in Concord, N.C. The poll was voted on by the Big South’s head coaches and a media panel. The Chanticleers earned 107 points in the poll. Coastal Carolina had one second-place vote and 12 votes in the top-five of the conference. The parity of the league in 2008-2009 was shown in the poll, as Winthrop, last year’s Big South Tournament champion, was picked to win the conference with 202 votes and nine-first place votes, but the Eagles also received one 10th-place vote. Seven teams earned a first-place vote in the poll. Winthrop was followed by Radford (189 points, seven first-place votes), Gardner-Webb (188 points, three first-place votes) and Liberty (148 points, two first-place votes) in the top four. High Point was picked fifth with 132 points and one first-place vote, while Charleston Southern was sixth with 128 points and one first-place vote. VMI was picked just ahead of the Chanticleers with 110 points and one first-place votes. Coastal Carolina was next, followed by 2007 Big South co-regular season champion UNC Asheville (83 points) and Big South newcomer Presbyterian (33 points).
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 Carolina is 34-6 (85.0 percent) since the start of the 2002-03 season in non-conference games at Kimbel. Coastal Carolina 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 68-26 (72.3 percent) overall at the Conway campus venue in the last six years.
Harris Named to Blue Ribbon Preseason All-Big South Team
Coastal Carolina University redshirt junior Joseph Harris (Lejeune, N.C./Lejeune) was named to the All-Big South Preseason Team by the Blue Ribbon Basketball Yearbook, it was announced Sept. 24. The magazine also forecasted the Chanticleers to finish in fifth place in the Big South Conference standings. Harris, a 6-5 forward, returns to the Chant lineup after missing most of last season with a thumb injury. Harris averaged 7.9 points and 2.8 assists in the eight games he played for Coastal Carolina. This included a 14-point, 14-rebound performance against Presbyterian Dec. 7 and a 16-point, 10-rebound night at Houston Nov. 24. The redshirt junior had 13 blocked shots in eight games and now has 74 in his career, which is tied for fourth in Coastal Carolina history. Harris was joined by Liberty’s Anthony Smith, Charleston Southern’s Omar Carter, Gardner-Webb’s Grayson Flittner and Radford’s Joey Lynch-Floor on Blue Ribbon’s All-Conference Team. The magazine picked Smith as the Player of the Year, with Liberty’s Seth Curry earning Preseason Newcomer of the Year honors.
Coach Ellis Can Be Seen and Heard
Head Coach Cliff Ellis will have a radio and television show for the second straight season. The Cliff Ellis Show can be seen on WDPE-TV Channel 15 starting with a preview show Thursday, Nov. 13 at 7:30 p.m. There will be a Dec. 7 show and then it will pick up after the New Year on Sunday’s at 12 p.m. The Chanticleer Call-In for basketball will start Thursday, Dec. 4 at 6 p.m., at Logan’s Roadhouse in the Coastal Grand Mall. Matt Hogue will be the host of the hour show, which will take place every Thursday during the season except for the Christmas and New Year holiday and Feb. 26, as the Chants have a game at Charleston Southern.
Gray Joins Chants Roster, Has to Sit Out 2008-09
Junior Chad Gray (Kingstree, S.C./Florida Prep (South Carolina)) will practice with the team but will not see game action in 2008-09 due to NCAA transfer rules after transferring from South Carolina to Coastal Carolina over the summer. Gray played for the Gamecocks for two seasons, averaging 2.2 points and 1.4 rebounds a contest last season. He had a career-high 10 points against Georgia as a freshman.
Chanticleers Sign Miller to Letter-of-Intent
The Coastal Carolina University men’s basketball program has signed Devin Miller (Chicago, Ill./Martin Luther King (Kennedy-King College)) to a National Letter-of-Intent, Head Coach Cliff Ellis announced Nov. 13.
Miller, a 6-5 guard, is averaging 16 points and is shooting 52.9 percent from three-point range this season for Kennedy-King College in Chicago, Ill. Miller also is shooting 47 percent from the floor for the Statesmen. Miller attended Martin Luther King High School and went to prep school at Boys to Men Academy in Chicago. Miller also received interest from Eastern Illinois and Chicago State.
Chanticleers in the Pros
There are plenty of former Chanticleers playing professionally overseas this season. Jack Leasure just signed a deal to play for Worthersee in the Austrian A League. Pele Paelay is averaging 15.0 points and 7.5 rebounds a game for the Kaiserslautern Braves in Germany. Moses Sonko is averaging 12.3 points and 6.7 rebounds a contest for UJAP Quimper in France. Clint Reed is averaging 5.3 points and 2.3 rebounds a game for the Sydney Spirit in Australia.
Up Next
Coastal Carolina hosts VMI Saturday, Feb. 14 at 2 p.m. The game is part of a men’s-women’s doubleheader, with the women taking on Charleston Southern at 4:30 p.m.
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