Big South Season Recap

We’ll never know how special this season could have been for Coastal Carolina and the Big South.

In mid-February, the Chanticleers were 24-2 overall and 15-0 in the conference, and they were crushing just about everyone. The team had caught the attention of pollsters, who had Coastal Carolina just outside the top 25 in the Associated Press’ and coaches’ polls. Based on votes, Coastal Carolina was the No. 27 or 28 team in the nation, depending on whether you prefer to trust writers or coaches.

And then everything fell apart.

Against Gardner Webb Feb. 15, point guard Kierre Greenwood went down with an ACL injury that ended his season. Without Greenwood, Coastal Carolina dropped a nail-biter 59-57 to the Bulldogs for the team’s first loss since a 19-point loss to Georgetown before Thanksgiving. But the bad news was just starting.

The Gardner Webb game was also the last one that Big South leading scorer Desmond Holloway would play. The team indefinitely suspended Holloway Feb. 17 amid an NCAA investigation that Holloway received improper benefits as a Juco player before arriving at Coastal Carolina. Holloway was a dominant force who would have presented match up problems for high-major teams in the NCAA Tournament. He averaged 18.5 points, 6.9 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game, and he shot better than 50 percent from the field and 35 percent from long range.

Without Greenwood and Holloway, Coastal Carolina lost a week later to UNC-Asheville at home, which foreshadowed another loss to the Bulldogs in the championship game of the Big South Tournament. The Chanticleers earned an NIT berth by virtue of winning the Big South’s regular-season title, and Coastal Carolina lost 68-44 at Alabama in the first round.

UNC-Asheville fared slightly better in the NCAA Tournament, beating the Sun Belt Conference’s Arkansas-Little Rock in a First Four match up of No. 16 seeds. The Bulldogs bowed out of the tournament in a blowout loss to No. 1 Pittsburgh, 74-51.

We’ll never know what kind of NCAA Tournament seed Coastal Carolina could have earned with Greenwood and Holloway in the lineup in March — if they could have protected home court and earned the conference’s automatic bid. Despite the disappointing end, we’re giving a nod to the best player in the conference and picking Holloway for Big South Player of the Year.

Although Holloway missed the final three regular-season games and all of the post-season, he was the Big South’s most unstoppable player and worthy of this award. In fact, Holloway has professional aspirations and intends to work out for NBA teams. He said in an interview with the Charleston Sun News that he’d consider playing abroad if he doesn’t hear his name called in the NBA Draft in June.

Final Standings

1. Coastal Carolina 28-6, 16-2
2. Liberty 19-13, 13-5
3. UNC-Asheville 20-14, 11-7
4. VMI 18-13, 10-8
5. Charleston Southern 16-16, 9-9
6. Winthrop 13-17, 9-9
7. Presbyterian 13-18, 7-11
8. High Point 12-19, 7-11
9. Gardner Webb 11-21, 6-12
10. Radford 5-24, 2-16

Conference Tournament Notes

Coastal Carolina had home court advantage throughout the Big South Tournament, but the Chanticleers couldn’t cash in against UNC-Asheville in the conference championship game. The Bulldogs frustrated Coastal Carolina’s offense in every manner, holding the Chanticleers to 34.0 percent shooting and forcing 21 turnovers. Chris Stephenson led the Bulldogs’ balanced offense with 14 points, and three other Bulldogs reached double figures in scoring.

UNC-Asheville took out the regular-season champ and tournament darling en route to the Big South title and an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. In the semifinals, the Bulldogs beat No. 7 High Point, which delivered the upset of the tournament when the Panthers knocked out No. 2 Liberty on the Flames’ home court in the quarterfinals. High Point couldn’t match that magic in the semis, though.

Hoopville’s Big South Awards

Player of the Year: Desmond Holloway, Coastal Carolina

Coach of the Year: Cliff Ellis, Coastal Carolina

Defensive Player of the Year: Kelvin Martin, Charleston Southern

Rookie of the Year: D.J. Covington, VMI

All-Big South First Team
Desmond Holloway, Coastal Carolina
Stan Okoye, VMI
Jesse Sanders, Liberty
Nick Barbour, High Point
Jamarco Warren, Charleston Southern

All-Big South Second Team
J.P. Primm, UNC-Asheville
Austin Kenon, VMI
Chad Gray, Coastal Carolina
Matt Dickey, UNC-Asheville
John Brown, Liberty

SEASON HIGHLIGHTS

What we expected

We figured Jesse Sanders and John Brown would propel Liberty toward the top of the standings. Sanders earned first-team Big South honors, while Brown, a Juco All-American in 2009-10, earned second-team honors. If not for a late-season swoon, Liberty could have been in line to take advantage of Coastal Carolina’s depleted roster and earn a trip to the NCAA Tournament.

What we expected but failed to happen

As it turns out, Nick Barbour isn’t enough by himself to push High Point to the top of the Big South. The junior guard earned a spot on the first team All-Big South roster for averaging 17.7 points per game. But he had only one other reliable scorer on the squad, Shay Shine, who averaged 14.3 points per game. No one else averaged more than eight points per game. For a team we had pegged to finish at least in the top half of the standings, a 7-11 conference record is an unexpected disappointment.

What we didn’t expect

We figured Coastal Carolina had enough talent to slog through a competitive Big South in the middle of the pack. But we didn’t anticipate that the Chanticleers would have the fewest losses in the country before losing two critical players in Greenwood and Holloway in mid-February. Give coach Cliff Ellis a ton of credit for replacing three starters from the 2009-10 team and keeping this team dominant in the conference until disaster struck.

Team on the rise

Liberty edges UNC-Asheville for this title. The Flames ran out of steam this season and lost five straight games to finish 19-13. Next season, with all five starters set to return, Liberty should be able to keep the momentum rolling straight through the Big South Tournament. Sanders will be a favorite for conference player of the year, and he might receive competition from a teammate, Brown.

We’d be remiss to finish this section without mentioning Presbyterian. The Blue Hose will have three seniors and four juniors to lead the team. Unfortunately, because of a snafu in their transition from Division II, the Blue Hose will remain ineligible to earn the Big South’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. That’s rough for Al’Lonzo Coleman, Pierre Miller and Josh Johnson because the trio intentionally redshirted the 2009-10 season so that they would be eligible to compete for an NCAA Tournament bid this upcoming this season. If those three play with the determination to stick it to the NCAA, the rest of the Big South could be in trouble — even if the fruits of their labor can be only pride.

Team on the decline

You’d think that after underestimating Coastal Carolina entering this season, we’d learn from our mistakes. But with Holloway leaving for a professional league, Chad Gray graduating, Mike Holmes off the team, and Greenwood recovering from a serious knee injury, the Chanticleers have too many question marks to remain at the top of the conference. That’s especially true with the rise of teams like Liberty and UNC-Asheville, which will be looking to unseat the reigning regular-season champs.

Next Season Outlook

The Big South will have plenty of solid talent returning next season, with six of the 10 players on the All-Big South first and second teams returning. That’s especially good news for Liberty and UNC-Asheville, which will return both their all-conference players. Those two teams should be right near the top by the end of February 2012.

One of the interesting stories of the season will be Presbyterian, which remains a year away from full Division I eligibility, even though the team was built to be ready to compete for a conference title this season. If the Blue Hose fight to realize that master plan — even without a tournament bid at the end — Presbyterian could become a media darling as the team’s story becomes more well known.

Even the teams at the bottom of the pack this season could make strides next season. Radford and Gardner Webb had six juniors and seniors on their combined rosters. And High Point loses only three seniors. As these teams gain experience, the quality of play on the court should improve. It’s unlikely anyone would confuse Big South teams with power conference squads, but this conference appears to be on the rise in 2011-12.