Big South Conference Notebook
Eagles Flying High
Winthrop was faced with a busy four-game schedule this past week, due to a rescheduling of an earlier postponed game, but won all four games and now hold a commanding three-game lead over Liberty with only four games remaining in the regular season. The Eagles only need to win one more game or have Liberty lose once in order to clinch the regular season championship and the number one seed in the conference tournament. With the top seed in the tournament comes the right to host each game you play and for Winthrop, that would be beneficial as they are currently 12-0 this year at the Winthrop Coliseum.
The four wins last week increased Winthrop’s winning streak to eleven games, one short of the school record and the fifth longest current streak in the nation. Also, with a 20-5 overall record, it marks the fourth time in head coach Gregg Marshall’s seven seasons at Winthrop that the Eagles have reached the 20 win plateau, and the first time that it has occurred during the regular season.
Another Suspension
Last week’s Notebook led off with a story about Radford suspending four players for the rest of the year, including one of the best players in the league in Whit Holcomb-Faye. This week brought another high-profile suspension as High Point head coach Bart Lundy suspended senior forward Danny Gathings indefinitely before their game with Winthrop on Tuesday. Gathings, last season’s Big South Player of the Year, has not played in the Panthers’ last three games, though Lundy has mentioned that he will return to the court eventually this season. The suspension stemmed from Gathings’ reaction to a costly technical foul in a High Point loss to UNC Asheville on February 5. Without Gathings in the lineup, the Panthers have gone 1-2.
Player of the Week
Winthrop sophomore guard Torrell Martin was one of the many reasons why Winthrop came out of this week with a 4-0 record. Despite not being much of a factor in Winthrop’s latest game, he still finished the week averaging 16.5 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 steals over the four games. Martin also made 24 of 39 field goal attempts (61.5 percent) and made 12 of 22 three-pointers (54.5%)
Team Reports
Winthrop Eagles (20-5, 11-1) Last Week: 4-0
It is not often that a team will have to play four conference games in a six-day span, but the Eagles had that task this past week and seemed to be up for the challenge, winning all four games. Winthrop opened with a 67-60 win at home against UNC Asheville, then hit the road to beat High Point, 72-55, and Liberty, 69-61. Finally, the Eagles returned back home and the defense completely shut down Birmingham-Southern in a 55-41 Eagles win.
Martin was not the only impressive Eagle over the course of those four games. Junior forward James Shuler had a very strong week, reaching double-figures in three of the games and getting a double-double against High Point with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Freshman point guard Chris Gaynor had his best scoring day of his short career against Liberty with 19 points to go along with 6 rebounds and 4 assists.
The Eagles will look to extend their eleven-game winning streak with a pair of games this week. They will start with a game at Radford on February 16, and then come home for their final regular season game at the Winthrop Coliseum against High Point on February 19.
Liberty Flames (10-13, 8-4) Last Week: 1-1
With a chance to challenge Winthrop for the top spot in the league, the Flames fell to the Eagles at home, 69-61, to snap a fifteen game home conference winning streak. Liberty did get back to their winning ways two days later, though, by knocking off Charleston Southern at home, 70-66.
Sophomore guard David Dees had another stellar week for the Flames. Dees led the dropped a team-high 21 points against Winthrop to go along with 8 rebounds, and scoring 16 points points against Charleston Southern. Sophomore guard Larry Blair led the Flames with 19 points in their win over Charleston Southern and senior forward Leo Lightbourne had a double-double against Winthrop.
Liberty will have a busy week, playing three games in a six-day span. The Flames begin with a home contest against Coastal Carolina on Valentine’s Day, before hitting the road to face VMI on February 17. Their week will close out with a February 19 meeting at home against their biggest rival, Radford.
Charleston Southern Buccaneers (9-13, 6-6) Last Week: 1-1
As is normal for Charleston Southern, they had a couple of close games this week, splitting a pair of Big South games to stay at the .500 mark. The Bucs started the week at home with a nail-biting 56-50 win over VMI. CSU then traveled to Liberty and fell 70-66 in a game that was close most of the way.
Junior guard Thomas Harrison continues to improve over the course of the season. Harrison led the Bucs with 13 points in their win over VMI and scored 15 points against Liberty. He also was able to grab 8 rebounds in each of the games. Senior center Nathan Ball was CSU’s leading scorer against Liberty, scoring 17 points to go along with 6 rebounds.
The Buccaneers will be on the road at High Point in their only Big South game of the week. However, Charleston Southern will play a non-conference game, hosting The Citadel on February 17.
High Point Panthers (11-14, 6-6) Last Week: 1-2
High Point had a busier than expected week as their earlier game against Winthrop that was postponed was rescheduled this week to tip-off a three-game in five-day stretch for the Panthers. Without Gathings in the line-up, High Point only managed to win one game, a 79-72 home win over Coastal Carolina to close the week out. Before that game, the Panthers fell at home to Winthrop 72-55 and fell in a tight battle at Birmingham-Southern, 74-73.
In Gathings’ absence due to suspension, other players were forced to step up. Senior center Jerry Echenique was strong all week, averaging 14 points over the three games including a 20 point, 9 rebound effort in the Panthers’ win over Coastal Carolina. Junior guard Akeem Scott was the team’s leading scorer against Birmingham-Southern with 21 points while junior forward Mark Wilson scored 15 points to lead all High Point scorers in the loss to Winthrop.
The Panthers will look to avenge a pair of losses that they suffered earlier in the season this week. They will first host Charleston Southern on February 14, a team that beat them 76-74 in January. Then High Point will head to Winthrop on February 19 to face an Eagles team that won the first meeting, 72-55.
UNC-Asheville Bulldogs (9-14, 6-6) Last Week: 1-1
The Bulldogs spent this past week on the road, falling to Winthrop, 67-60, then beating VMI 77-72. Both games were close for the duration, with UNCA unable to stop Winthrop’s offense in the second half in the loss, but being able to hold off VMI in the second half in their win.
Junior forward Chad Mohn has emerged as an inside threat for the Bulldogs. In prior years, he was more known as an outside shooter, but recently he has filled in well in the paint area, as well as continuing to be effective from outside. This past week, Mohn led UNCA in scoring in both of their games with 14 points against Winthrop and 19 points against VMI. Senior forward Bryan McCullough shared team-high honors with Mohn against Winthrop with 14 points. Sophomore guard K.J. Garland had a strong all-around game in the win over VMI, scoring 15 points to go along with 5 rebounds and 6 assists.
UNCA will not have to leave the friendly confines of the Justice Center this week as they will host a pair of conference games. First the Bulldogs will battle Birmingham-Southern on February 14, then they will take on Coastal Carolina in a regionally televised game on February 18.
Coastal Carolina Chanticleers (9-15, 6-6) Last Week: 1-1
Coastal Carolina started the week strong, easily defeating a short-handed Radford team at home, 79-61. However, the Chanticleers were unable to take advantage of a Danny Gathings-less High Point, losing to the Panthers on the road, 79-72.
Freshman guard Jack Leasure continues to make his case for the Big South’s Freshman of the Year award. Leasure led the Chants in scoring in both of their games, scoring 22 points in the win over Radford and 23 points in the loss to High Point. Junior guard Pele Paelay also had a solid week, averaging 14.5 points over the two games and averaging 8.5 rebounds over the week.
A couple of challenging road games face the Chanticleers this week. Coastal will head to Liberty on February 14, then they will take on UNC Asheville on February 18.
Radford Highlanders (10-12, 5-6) Last Week: 0-1
Though Radford was able to win in their first game without their four suspended players, they found the going much tougher this week in their only game. The Highlanders fell on the road at Coastal Carolina 79-61 and struggled to get anything going against the Chanticleers.
As to be expected without Holcomb-Faye in the lineup, sophomore forward Chris Oliver and senior forward Brandon Jeffers were the most productive players for the Highlanders. Both forwards scored 17 points in the loss and Oliver was able to grab 6 rebounds.
The Highlanders will start the week with a pair of home contests. First they will host VMI on February 14, and then they will welcome Winthrop to the TerrorDome on February 16. Radford will then hit the road to finish the week, battling Liberty at the Vines Center on February 19.
Birmingham-Southern Panthers (12-11, 5-7) Last Week: 1-1
Things were looking up for the Panthers, as they beat High Point at home to start the week, 74-73, then got senior center Shema Mbyirukira back into the lineup before their second game after he had missed several games with an injury. However, Birmingham-Southern was unable to capitalize on Mbyirukira’s return as they fell to Winthrop, 55-41.
In their win over High Point, BSC was helped by a huge game from junior guard James Collins. Collins led the team with 25 points and also managed to grab 7 rebounds. Junior forward Thomas Viglianco also had a strong game in the win, scoring 22 points. Senior guard Jakob Sigurdarson was the team’s leading scorer against Winthrop with 16 points, but the Panthers struggled on the offensive end, only making nine field goals and shooting 22.5 percent from the floor in the game.
On February 14, the Panthers will look to get back in the win column on the road at UNC Asheville. Then BSC will head back home for a pair of games. First they will host Texas-Pan American on February 17 in a non-conference match-up, then they will take on VMI on February 19 in their final regular season game at the Bill Battle Coliseum.
VMI Keydets (6-16, 0-11) Last Week: 1-2
VMI snapped a 13-game losing streak over the week as they hosted Longwood in a non-conference battle and beat the visiting Lancers, 65-52. However, that game was surrounded by a pair of conference losses, leaving the Keydets searching for their first Big South win of the year. VMI first fell at Charleston Southern, 56-50, and then hosted UNC Asheville to close out the week and losing 77-72.
The only VMI player that consistently played well this past week was sophomore guard Matt Coward. Coward reached double-figures in all three Keydet games and also dished out 8 assists against UNC Asheville.
The Keydets will have three chances this week to get in the win column for the first time in Big South play. They will play at Radford on February 14 and at Birmingham-Southern on February 19. Between those games, VMI will be at home to face the Liberty Flames.
