Men's Basketball Weekly Honors - Feb. 27
Rob Washburn
CAA MEN'S BASKETBALL WEEKLY REPORT - FEB. 27 (PDF format)
PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
C.J. Bryce • UNCW
So., G, 6-5, 185 - Charlotte, N.C./North Mecklenburg
Bryce averaged 25.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists as UNCW clinched the CAA regular-season title with a pair of victories last week. The sophomore guard poured in a career-high 28 points with six rebounds in an 83-78 triumph over Towson that ended the Tigers’ six-game winning streak. He followed with a team-best 23 points and five boards in a 74-65 win over Northeastern. For the week, Bryce shot 61.8% from the floor, including 5-of-6 from 3-point range.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK:
Bolden Brace • Northeastern
Fr., G, 6-6, 221 - Santa Barbara, Calif./Santa Barbara
Brace averaged 26.0 points and 6.0 rebounds as Northeastern split a pair of road games last week. The freshman guard scored a career-high 40 points in a 105-104 double overtime victory at Elon, which was just the third 40-point effort in school history. He tied a CAA record with 10 three-pointers in the game. Brace added 12 points and six rebounds in a loss at UNCW. For the week, he shot 44% from the floor.
CONFERENCE NOTES:
PAIRINGS SET FOR CAA MEN’S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: The pairings are set for the 2017 CAA Men’s Basketball Championship, which will be held March 3-6 at the North Charleston (S.C.) Coliseum. First-round action begins on Friday, March 3 as #8 Hofstra faces #9 Delaware at 6 p.m., followed by #7 James Madison against #10 Drexel at 8:30 p.m. In Saturday’s quarterfinals, #1 UNCW takes on the Hofstra/Delaware winner at Noon, followed by #4 William & Mary against #5 Elon at 2:30 p.m. #2 College of Charleston faces the JMU/Drexel winner at 6 p.m. and #3 Towson meets #6 Northeastern at 8:30 p.m. The semifinals are set for 2 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. on Sunday and the CAA championship game will tip at 7 p.m. on Monday. A complete tournament bracket is included with this release.
UNCW CAPTURES THIRD STRAIGHT REGULAR-SEASON TITLE: UNCW captured its third straight CAA regular-season title after posting victories over Towson (83-78) and Northeastern (74-65) last week. The Seahawks are the first team to capture three consecutive regular-season crowns since VCU did it from 2007-09. UNCW also set a school record for overall wins with 26.
CLOSE GAMES CONTINUE: Five of the 10 CAA games last week were decided by six points or less, including Northeastern’s 105-104 double OT win at Elon on Thursday. Eleven CAA games played over the past four weeks were decided by two points or less.
OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCES: It was another week of incredible offensive performances around the CAA. Northeastern freshman Bolden Brace tied a CAA record with 10 three-pointers and scored 40 points in the Huskies’ 105-104 double OT win at Elon. It was the first 40-point effort by a CAA player since Delaware’s Davon Usher scored 42 vs. CofC in 2014 and the 10 treys tied the league mark set by George Mason’s Dre Smith (2008) and Georgia State’s R.J. Hunter (2013). In the same game, NU’s T.J. Williams recorded the first triple-double by a Huskies’ player since 2006 with 26 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists, and Elon’s Tyler Seibring scored a career-high 30 points with 12 rebounds. Hofstra’s Justin Wright-Foreman averaged 27.0 ppg and 5.5 rpg last week, including 35 points in a win at William & Mary. W&M’s Daniel Dixon posted back-to-back 32-point efforts against Hofstra and Towson. Towson’s William Adala Moto scored a career-high 33 points at UNCW. CofC’s Jarrell Brantley recorded back-to-back double-doubles in wins over Delaware (21 pts/10 reb) and Drexel (22 pts/10 reb). Elon’s Dmitri Thompson averaged 22.5 ppg last week and had the two highest-scoring games of his career.
PILING UP THE WINS: UNCW (26-5) is one of 11 teams in Division I with at least 26 wins this season as of Feb. 27. The others are #1 Kansas (26-3), #2 Villanova (27-3), #3 UCLA (26-3), #4 Gonzaga (29-1), #6 Oregon (26-4), #7 Arizona (26-4), #20 Saint Mary’s (26-3), #21 Wichita State (27-4), Monmouth (26-5) and Vermont (26-5).
THREE CAA TEAMS IN TOP 98 IN LATEST RPI REPORT: Three CAA teams are ranked in the top 98 in the latest RPI rankings released by Collegiate Basketball News (rpiratings.com) through games of Feb. 26. UNCW (26-5), which has won 23 of its last 27 games, leads the way at #37. College of Charleston (23-8), which has captured 20 of its last 25 contests, is ranked #67. Towson (19-12), which has won 11 of its last 14 games, is ranked #98. Only 10 other conferences (American, ACC, Atlantic 10, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Mountain West, Pac 12, SEC and West Coast) have three teams in the top 98 of the RPI. The CAA is ranked #11 among the nation’s 32 Division I leagues.
College of Charleston
• On a 4-game winning streak after beating Delaware (78-65) and Drexel (80-67) last week. CofC’s 23 regular-season wins are the most since 2008-09.
• Jarrell Brantley recorded double-doubles vs. UD (21 pts/10 reb) and DU (22 pts/10 reb) and has a team-high 9 double-doubles for the season. He’s averaging 20.2 ppg and 8.2 rpg over his past five games.
• Joe Chealey posted his first double-double vs. UD with 20 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists and scored 16 points vs. DU. He’s reached double figures in 13 straight games.
• Grant Riller added 10 points vs. UD. He has tallied double digits in 14 of his last 15 games and has eight 20-point efforts. He’s averaging 15.9 ppg in CAA play.
• Marquise Pointer scored a season-high 11 points vs. UD on 4-for-4 FG shooting.
• Cameron Johnson had 14 points and 5 rebounds in the Drexel win.
• CofC is shooting 53.4% from the floor over the past five games.
Delaware
• Dropped road games at CofC (78-65) and Elon (81-59) last week. Cut a 21-point second-half deficit to six points at CofC.
• Ryan Daly tallied team-highs of 18 points and 9 rebounds at Elon. It was his 9th straight game in double figures.
• Daly has been UD’s top scorer in 16 of the last 20 games and top rebounder in 16 of the past 19 contests. He broke the UD freshman records for points and rebounds.
• Cazmon Hayes hit 4-of-7 treys and scored a season-high 20 points off the bench at CofC. He reached 1,000 career points at Elon.
• Eric Carter averaged 13.0 ppg and 8.0 rpg last week, including 14 points and 8 rebounds at CofC. He’s averaging 11.4 ppg and 6.7 rpg over the past nine games.
• Anthony Mosley made 6 steals last week. He’s 2nd in the CAA with 1.7 spg.
• UD committed just eight turnovers at CofC and 10 at Elon. The Blue Hens are averaging 9.3 tpg in the last four games.
Drexel
• Fell 70-64 to JMU and 80-67 at CofC last week. Five of their last seven losses have been by six points or less.
• Kurk Lee hit four treys and scored 18 points vs. JMU and had 13 points and 8 boards at CofC. He’s averaging 18.7 ppg over the last 9 games and is 10th in the CAA in scoring.
• Mohamed Bah scored 12 points at CofC and grabbed a team-high 9 rebounds vs. JMU. He’s averaging 11.7 ppg and 8.7 rpg over his past three games.
• Rodney Williams contributed 15 points and 7 rebounds vs. JMU. He has 10 20-point outings this season and has scored double figures in 17 of the past 20 games.
• Sammy Mojica made 4-of-7 threes and netted 18 points vs. JMU. He’s scored double digits in 10 of his last 13 contests.
• Sam Green hit 3-of-5 treys and scored a career-high 11 points off the bench at CofC.
• Drexel made 10-of-23 threes vs. JMU. The Dragons are averaging 9.0 treys over the past four games.
Elon
• Fell 105-104 in 2ot to Northeastern, but beat Delaware, 81-59, last week. Finished 7-2 in CAA home games.
• Tyler Seibring posted a double-double with a career-high 30 points and 12 rebounds vs. NU and added 9 points and 10 boards against UD. He has six 20-point efforts and averaged 15.9 ppg and 7.3 rpg in CAA play.
• Dmitri Thompson recorded his first double-double vs. NU with career-highs of 23 points and 10 rebounds and scored a team-high 22 points in the win over UD.
• Dainan Swoope averaged 12.5 ppg last week, including 14 points vs. UD. It was his sixth straight game in double figures.
• Brian Dawkins had 11 points vs. NU. He has 17 double-digit efforts in the past 22 games.
• Elon has clinched its first winning season since 2013-14.
• Elon made 14 three-pointers vs. NU and 10 against UD and averages 9.6 threes per game. The Phoenix have hit double-digit treys 16 times.
Hofstra
• Earned road victories at W&M (96-82) and JMU (71-66) last week.
• Justin Wright-Foreman scored a career-high 35 points at W&M and had a team-high 19 points at JMU. He’s reached double figures in 21 straight games, has tallied 20+ points in 10 of his last 11 contests and has four 30-point efforts. He averaged a league-high 23.2 ppg in CAA play.
• Rokas Gustys posted his 11th double-double (15 pts/14 reb) at JMU and grabbed 15 rebounds at W&M. He has 19 games with 10+ rebounds this season and ranks 13th on the CAA’s all-time list with 924 career rebounds.
• Deron Powers averaged 16.0 ppg and 5.0 apg last week, including 19 points at W&M in his hometown of Williamsburg.
• Eli Pemberton made 3-of-6 treys and scored 16 points at W&M and added 11 points at JMU, which was his 20th double-digit game.
• HU hit 14-of-31 from 3-point range at W&M. The Pride has made 10 or more treys in four of the past six games.
James Madison
• Rallied past Drexel, 70-64, but lost 71-66 to Hofstra. Seven of JMU’s last nine games have been decided by 6 points or less.
• Jackson Kent tallied team-highs of 16 points and 8 rebounds at DU and had 9 points, 7 boards and 7 assists vs. HU. He’s reached double digits in 15 of the past 19 games and is scoring 15.5 ppg in CAA play.
• Tom Vodanovich averaged 12.0 ppg last week, including scoring all 15 of his points in the first half at Drexel.
• Paulius Satkus has scored double figures in 5 of the past 8 games. He’s averaging 10.9 ppg in CAA play on 54.3% FG shooting.
• Ivan Lukic scored 10 points vs. Hofstra and is averaging 10.6 ppg over his past 8 games.
• Shakir Brown poured in a season-high tying 20 points against Hofstra. It was his most points since Jan. 28.
• Dimitrije Cabarkapa had 9 points and 8 rebounds vs. Hofstra. He’s 7-of-13 from beyond the arc over the past three games.
UNCW
• Earned 3rd straight CAA regular-season title by beating Towson (83-78) and Northeastern (74-65). Set school record for wins.
• C.J. Bryce scored a career-high 28 points vs. TU and a team-best 23 points vs. NU. He shot 61.8% from the floor for the week. Bryce has tallied double digits in 26 of his last 27 games and has 20+ points 10 times.
• Denzel Ingram averaged 13.5 ppg and 5.0 apg last week. He’s scored double figures 22 times this season.
• Chris Flemmings scored 19 points vs. NU and has 14 double-figure outings in the past 17 games. He went over 1,000 points for his UNCW career vs. Towson.
• Devontae Cacok posted his league-best 11th double-double (11 pts/10 reb) vs. Towson. He leads the nation in FG percentage (78.7%) and is 2nd in the CAA with 9.8 rpg.
• UNCW ranks 11th in the nation with 10.5 turnovers per game.
• The Seahawks are 11-3 on the road. The 11 road wins rank second nationally.
Northeastern
• Split road games last week, beating Elon 105-104 in 2ot but losing 74-65 at UNCW. NU’s 105 points were its most against a Division I opponent since 1993.
• Bolden Brace hit a CAA-record 10 threes and scored a career-high 40 points at EU. It’s only the 3rd 40-point game in NU history. He’s scoring 15.3 ppg over his last 8 games.
• T.J. Williams posted a triple-double (26 pts/10 reb/12 ast) at EU, which was the first by an NU player since 2006. He added 24 points at UNCW and has tallied double digits in 30 straight games with 18 20+-point efforts. He’s been NU’s top scorer 21 times.
• Alex Murphy, who has scored double figures in nine straight games, didn’t play last week.
• Anthony Green posted his 2nd double-double (11 pts/11 reb) at Elon and had 10 points and 9 boards at UNCW.
• Jimmy Marshall made 3-of-5 treys and scored a career-high 15 points at Elon.
• NU made 16 treys against CofC. The Huskies averaged 9.7 treys per game in CAA play.
Towson
• Dropped road games at UNCW (83-78) and W&M (83-79) last week. Went 11-3 after starting 0-4 in CAA play.
• William Adala Moto scored a career-high 33 points at UNCW and a team-best 15 points at W&M. He hit 13-of-18 from the floor for the week. The 33 points were the most by a TU player in a road game since 2007.
• Mike Morsell added 12 points at UNCW and is averaging 16.3 ppg over the last 8 games. He went over 1,000 career points on Feb 16.
• Zane Martin scored 10 points at W&M and is averaging 10.5 ppg over the last 6 games.
• Towson has out-rebounded 46 of its last 50 foes. TU leads the CAA and ranks 8th in Div. I in rebound margin (+7.9 rpg).
• John Davis, who averaged 11.8 ppg and a team-high 7.6 rpg, will miss the remainder of the season with a leg injury,
• Towson shot 52% from the floor vs. UNCW. which was its best percentage since Jan. 12.
• Deshaun Morman, who scored 13 points at W&M, ranks 4th in the CAA with 1.6 spg.
William & Mary
• Went 1-1 at home last week, beating Towson (83-79) but losing to Hofstra (96-82). Finished 13-1 at home this season.
• Daniel Dixon scored a team-high 32 points vs. HU and TU with 5 assists in each game. He’s reached double figures in 22 straight games, has 14 20+-point efforts and five 30-point outings. He’s averaging 22.9 ppg in CAA play. Dixon hit 20-of-22 FT’s last week.
• Nathan Knight scored a career-high 20 points with a team-best 7 rebounds vs. TU. He’s averaging 11.3 ppg in the past 8 games and tops the CAA with 1.4 bpg.
• Omar Prewitt added 12 points and 5 rebounds vs. Hofstra. He’s averaging 17.3 ppg and 7.3 rpg over his last 6 games.
• Jack Whitman scored 11 points off the bench vs. Hofstra. He’s shooting 70.4% from the floor in CAA play.
• W&M’s senior class recorded 76 total wins and 43 CAA wins, which was the most ever.
• W&M shot 51.1% from the floor vs. TU and 50% vs. HU, which was the 16th time overall and 12th in the past 17 games it has topped 50%. W&M has 13 games with 10+ treys.