Men's Basketball Weekly Honors - Jan. 22
Rob Washburn
CAA MEN'S BASKETBALL WEEKLY REPORT - JAN. 22 (PDF format)
CAA MEN'S BASKETBALL PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
Joe Chealey • College of Charleston
Sr., G, 6-4, 190 - Orlando, Fla./Apopka
Chealey averaged 25.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists in Charleston’s 2-0 week. The senior guard scored a team-high 18 points with four assists in an 80-76 victory over UNCW and poured in a career-best 33 points with five rebounds as the Cougars rallied past Hofstra, 76-70. For the week, Chealey shot 61.9% from the floor, including 7-of-12 from 3-point range, and made 18-of-20 (90%) from the free throw line. He’s reached double figures in 19 of 20 games this season and moved into fifth place on CofC’s all-time scoring list.
CAA MEN'S BASKETBALL ROOKIE OF THE WEEK:
Darius Banks • James Madison
Fr., G, 6-5, 225 - St. Petersburg, Fla./St. Petersburg
Banks averaged 15.0 points, 10.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists as James Madison posted a pair of CAA wins last week. The freshman guard recorded his first double-double with career-highs of 20 points and 15 rebounds as the Dukes rallied past Elon, 85-74 in OT. It was the first 20/15 effort by a JMU freshman since 2005. He followed with 10 points, six boards and five assists in a 75-73 victory over Drexel. Banks has scored double figures in five of his past six games.
CONFERENCE NOTES:
CAA RACE REMAINS TIGHT: The CAA men’s basketball standings remain tight as the conference schedule approches the halfway mark on Thursday. Northeastern and William & Mary share the league lead at 6-2, but there are seven teams bunched within two games of first place. Charleston and Hofstra are tied for third at 5-3, while Delaware, Elon and Towson have 4-4 marks. The CAA is one of only three conferences nationally to have seven teams separated by two games.
NORTHEASTERN SETS SHOOTING MARK: Northeastern shot a remarkable 71.4% from the floor in its 90-70 victory at William & Mary last Thursday. The field goal percentage is the 4th-best mark in CAA history and is the best by any conference team since 1986. NU also matched the highest percentage of any Division I team in the nation this season.
CAA GAMES MEAN CLOSE GAMES: Conference play has brought plenty of down-to-the-wire finishes. Nine of the league’s 10 teams have had at least one conference game go into overtime, with James Madison and UNCW each having three. Of the 40 CAA games played thus far, seven have gone to overtime and 11 others have been decided by six points or less.
THREE TEAMS IN TOP 87 OF RPI: Three CAA teams are ranked in the top 87 of the latest NCAA RPI through games of Jan. 21. William & Mary leads the way at #72, Northeastern follows at #78, and Hofstra is ranked #87. The CAA is one of only 11 conferences (American, ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, C-USA, Mountain West, Pac 12, SEC, West Coast) with three teams ranked in the top 87. The CAA is ranked 12th out of the nation’s 32 Division I conferences.
HOME COURT ADVANTAGE: Home teams are 25-15 (.625) in CAA play so far, but Charleston (5-0) is the only squad that is still unbeaten. Ten of the 15 road wins have been recorded by just three teams - William & Mary (4-0), Northeastern (3-1) and Hofstra (3-2). For the season, CAA teams are a combined 64-23 at home and also have 12 victories on neutral courts.
LIGHTING UP THE SCOREBOARD: Offenses have taken center stage in conference play. Through the first 40 league games, the winning team has scored at least 80 points in 26 of them, including all five last Thursday. Eight squads are averaging 75.0 ppg or more in CAA action. Shooting percentages have been impressive as well. Eight teams are shooting better than 45% from the floor, six are hitting at least 36.5% from 3-point range, and five squads are shooting better than 76% from the free throw line in conference play.
YOUTH MOVEMENT: Young players are making a big impact in the CAA. There are six sophomores, one freshman and only two seniors among the CAA’s top 15 in scoring through games of Jan. 21. There are also just three seniors among the CAA’s top 10 in rebounding.
UNCW’S CACOK LEADS NATION IN REBOUNDING: UNCW junior Devontae Cacok leads the nation in rebounding (12.7 rpg) and Hofstra’s Rokas Gustys ranks 7th (11.5 rpg) through games of Jan. 21. Cacok has grabbed at least 10 rebounds in 15 of 20 games and is also 3rd in the nation with 14 double-doubles. Several other CAA players are among the nation’s top 20 statisically. W&M’s David Cohn ranks 16th in assists (6.3 apg). Drexel’s Austin Williams is 20th (2.7 bpg) in blocks. W&M’s Connor Burchfield is 1st in 3-point FG percentage (51.4%) while teammate Matt Milon is 6th (49.1%).
WRIGHT-FOREMAN EXTENDS SCORING STREAK: Hofstra junior Justin Wright-Foreman, who leads the CAA and ranks third in the nation in scoring with 25.1 ppg, extended his double-digit scoring streak to 42 games last week. The streak is the fifth-longest active streak in the nation. Wright-Foreman has scored 20 or more points 16 times this season and has topped the 30-point mark in five games. He’s the first player since Towson’s Gary Neal in 2007 to score 35 or more points in three CAA games.
W&M AMONG NATION’S BEST OFFENSIVE TEAMS: William & Mary can make a strong case as the top shooting team in the nation. The Tribe leads the nation in 3-point FG percentage (44.5%) and free throw percentage (80.9%), ranks 8th in field goal percentage (50.8%), 12th in 3-pointers per game (11.0) and is 17th in scoring (85.2 ppg).
HOFSTRA’S GUSTYS MOVES TO 2ND ON CAA’S CAREER REBOUNDS LIST: Hofstra senior Rokas Gustys has moved into 2nd place on the CAA’s career rebounds list. With 1,162 rebounds, Gustys trails only Navy Hall of Famer David Robinson (1,314) on the CAA’s career caroms chart. He ranks second among all active Division I players in rebounds behind Seton Hall’s Angel Delgado.
College of Charleston (14-6, 5-3 in CAA)
• Improved to 10-0 at home after beating UNCW (80-76) and Hofstra (76-70) last week. Have won 12 straight at TD Arena.
• Joe Chealey averaged 25.5 ppg last week, including a career-high 33 points vs. Hofstra. He ranks 5th in the CAA in scoring this season and moved up to 5th on CofC’s all-time points list (1,583 pts).
• Grant Riller scored 25 points on 11-of-14 FG shooting vs. HU and averaged 20.5 ppg for the week. He’s hit double figures in 13 of his last 14 games and has six 20-point efforts.
• Jarrell Brantley had 16 points and a team-high 7 rebounds vs. UNCW and went over 1,000 points for his career. He’s averaging 18.1 ppg and 5.9 rpg in CAA play.
• Cameron Johnson had 11 points vs. UNCW and went over 1,000 points for his career.
• Nick Harris grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds vs. Hofstra.
• CofC leads the CAA in scoring defense (66.6 ppg) and is 3rd in FG% defense (42.6%).
Delaware (11-10, 4-4 in CAA)
• Lost road games at Hofstra (90-63) and Northeastern (76-64) last week.
• Ryan Allen poured in a team-high 16 points at Hofstra and NU on 50% FG shooting. He’s tallied double figures in 14 of the past 16 games and leads all CAA freshmen in scoring with 14.1 ppg.
• Ryan Daly averaged 14.5 ppg and 8.5 rpg last week. He’s scored double figures in 19 straight games. Daly ranks in the top 15 in the CAA in scoring, rebounds and steals.
• Anthony Mosley tallied 15 points at HU and had 13 points and 8 boards at NU. It was his 4th double-digit outing in the past 5 games.
• Eric Carter has recorded a team-best five double-doubles and ranks third in the CAA in rebounding (8.7 rpg).
• Jacob Cushing, who had missed 10 games with a broken nose, returned to action.
• UD had just nine turnovers in both games and ranks 2nd in the CAA with 10.7 tpg.
Drexel (7-14, 1-7 in CAA)
• Dropped road games at Towson (90-68) and JMU (75-73) last week.
• Tramaine Isabell posted his 4th double-double with team-highs of 21 points and 10 rebounds at JMU. He’s among the league’s top 10 in scoring and rebounding.
• Austin Williams scored a team-high 14 points on 6-of-7 FG shooting at Towson. He’s 3rd in the CAA in FG%, 5th in rebounds (8.3 rpg) and 1st in blocked shots (2.7 bpg).
• Alihan Demir added 13 points at JMU and 10 points at TU. He’s averaging 14.3 ppg on 53.8% FG shooting in CAA play and has scored double figures in 8 straight games.
• Kurk Lee had 12 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists at Towson. He has 9 double-digit efforts in the last 13 games, and is 18th in the CAA in scoring and 6th in assists.
• Troy Harper scored 14 points at JMU and nearly hit a halfcourt shot at the buzzer.
• Drexel was 17-of-20 at the free throw line against Towson and is shooting 71.1% from the charity stripe for the season.
Elon (12-9, 4-4 in CAA)
• Suffered close losses to JMU (85-74 in OT) and W&M (80-73) last week. It’s the first back-to-back losses of the season for Elon.
• Brian Dawkins averaged 17.0 ppg on 50% FG shooting last week, including a team-high 19 points vs. W&M. It was his fifth straight game in double figures.
• Tyler Seibring has reached double digits in 9 straight games after scoring 15 points at JMU and 11 vs. W&M. He’s averaging 17.3 ppg and 7.6 rpg while shooting 55.9% from the floor and 46% from 3 in CAA play.
• Dainan Swoope tallied team-highs of 20 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists at JMU. It was his 6th 20-point outing of the season.
• Dmitri Thompson had 10 points vs. W&M, which was his 8th double-digit outing in the last 9 games.
• Elon leads the CAA in FG% defense (42.7%) in conference play.
• Elon made 11 threes at JMU, which was its 14th game with 10+ treys. They rank 2nd in the CAA with 10.9 threes per game.
Hofstra (12-8, 5-3 in CAA)
• Topped Delaware, 90-63, but fell 76-70 at Charleston last week.
• Justin Wright-Foreman scored a team-high 26 points at CofC, which was his 42nd straight game with double digits. He’s tallied 20+ points in 16 games, topped 30 points five times and is 3rd in Div. I in scoring (25.1 ppg). He’s 7th in the CAA in assists (3.3 apg).
• Desure Buie set career-highs with 20 points and 8 assists vs. UD. He hit four 3-pointers and also made three steals.
• Rokas Gustys averaged 11.0 rpg last week. He’s 2nd on the CAA’s career rebounds list and has 10+ caroms in 13 games this year.
• Eli Pemberton scored a team-high 21 points vs. UD, which was his 15th game in double figures this season.
• Hofstra shot 55.4% from the floor vs. UD and is shooting 54% over the past 3 games. HU also made 12 3-pointers vs. the Hens.
• Hofstra has had eight games decided by 3 points or less and another in OT. The Pride is 7-2 in those contests.
James Madison (6-15, 2-6 in CAA)
• Overcame a 10-point deficit in the final 1:45 to beat Elon, 85-74 in OT, and followed with a 75-73 victory over Drexel last week.
• Stuckey Mosley scored a game-high 24 points vs. Elon, including a 3 that sent the game to OT. He’s 3rd in the CAA in scoring (19.1 ppg), has reached double digits in 14 straight games and has 9 20-point outings.
• Darius Banks averaged 15.0 ppg, 10.5 rpg and 4.5 apg last week, highlighted by his first double-double with career-highs of 20 points and 15 rebounds vs. Elon.
• Matt Lewis scored a team-best 20 points vs. Drexel and had 14 points and 7 boards vs. EU. He’s hit double digits in 7 straight games and is averaging 15.0 ppg in CAA play.
• DeVelle Phillips averaged 11.5 ppg on 10-of-13 FG shooting last week. He’s posted double figures in 6 of his past 7 contests.
• Ramone Snowden hit 6-of-10 treys and averaged 11.0 ppg last week.
• In JMU last 6 games, 3 have gone to OT and 2 others were decided by 2 points or less.
UNCW (6-14, 3-5 in CAA)
• Dropped a narrow 80-76 decision at CofC, but edged Towson, 73-71 in OT, at home. Three of last four games have gone to OT.
• Ty Taylor hit 5-of-8 threes and scored a career-high 23 points at CofC and followed with a team-best 20 points vs. TU. He’s had at least 15 points in 6 of the past 7 games.
• Devontae Cacok recorded his league-leading 14th double-double with 20 points and 13 rebounds at CofC. He leads the nation in rebounding (12.7 rpg), ranks 7th in the CAA in scoring (17.4 ppg) and is 1st in FG%.
• Jordon Talley hit 6-of-11 treys and averaged 16.0 ppg and 6.0 apg last week. He’s 10th in the CAA in scoring and 2nd in assists. He’s had double digits in 18 of the last 19 games.
• Jaylen Fornes scored 10 points vs. TU and is averaging 14.4 ppg over the past 5 games.
• Marcus Bryan averaged 11.0 rpg last week, including a team-best 13 boards vs. Towson. He ranks 4th in rebounding (8.4 rpg) in CAA play.
Northeastern (13-7, 6-2 in CAA)
• Moved into a tie for first after a 90-70 victory at W&M and a 76-64 triumph over Delaware. Have won 5 of their last 6.
• NU shot 71.4% from the floor at W&M, which is the 4th-best mark in CAA history and tied the best FG% by any Div. I team this season. Shooting 51.2% in CAA play.
• Vasa Pusica scored a team-best 20 points with 9 assists at W&M and talled 16 points vs. UD. He’s reached double digits in 15 of the last 16 games and ranks 11th in the CAA in scoring and 3rd in assists.
• Donnell Gresham scored all of his team-high 17 points in the second half vs. UD.
• Shawn Occeus had 12 points and 4 steals at W&M. He has 8 double-digit efforts in the past 11 games and tops the CAA in steals.
• Bolden Brace scored 13 points at W&M and grabbed a team-high 9 rebounds vs. UD. He’s hit 9-of-17 threes in the past 4 games.
• Anthony Green averaged 9.0 ppg on 8-of-9 FG shooting last week. He’s shooting 71.2% from the floor for the season.
Towson (14-7, 4-4 in CAA)
• Defeated Drexel, 90-68, but dropped a 73-71 overtime decision at UNCW.
• Zane Martin was TU’s top scorer in both games with 21 points at UNCW and 18 vs. Drexel. He’s reached double digits in 15 straight games and has 11 20-point outings.
• Justin Gorham came off the bench to score 13 points vs. DU and 10 at UNCW. He’s scored double figures in 6 straight games and is averaging 12.3 ppg over that stretch.
• Deshaun Morman averaged 12.5 ppg and 5.0 rpg last week on 8-of-11 FG shooting.
• Brian Starr scored 16 points vs. Drexel, which was his most since Nov. 17. He’s averaging 11.2 ppg in his past six games.
• Towson reached 90 points in back-to-back games for the first time under Pat Skerry and has had at least five players score double figures in 5 of the last 6 games. The Tigers are shooting 49% in CAA play.
• Towson leads the CAA in FG% defense (40.4%) and 3-point FG% defense (31.3%) and are 2nd in scoring defense (67.1 ppg).
William & Mary (13-6, 6-2 in CAA)
• Rebounded from a 90-70 loss to Northeastern by rallying for an 80-73 win at Elon. Improved to 4-0 on the road in CAA play.
• Connor Burchfield averaged 15.0 ppg last week, including a team-high 19 points and a career-high 8 rebounds at EU. He tops the CAA in 3-pt FG% and is 2nd in 3’s per game.
• Nathan Knight tallied a team-high 15 points vs. NU and added 14 points and 7 boards at EU. He’s among the top 6 in the CAA in scoring, rebounding, FG% and blocks and is averaging 20.4 ppg and 9.0 rpg in CAA play.
• David Cohn hit 5-of-7 treys and had 16 points and 6 assists at Elon. He’s scored double digits in 7 of the last 8 games and leads the CAA in assists (6.3 apg). His 402 career assists are 7 shy of the W&M record.
• Matt Milon added 13 points in both games and has scored double digits in 9 of his last 10 contests. He’s 2nd in the CAA in 3’s per game (2.9) and 3-point FG% (50.0%).
• W&M leads the CAA in scoring (85.2 ppg), FG% (50.8%), FT% (80.7%), 3-point FG% (44.5%) and 3-pointers per game (11.0).