Men's Basketball Weekly Honors - Feb. 12
Rob Washburn
CAA MEN'S BASKETBALL WEEKLY REPORT - FEB. 12 (PDF format)
CAA MEN'S BASKETBALL PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
Devontae Cacok • UNCW
Jr., F, 6-7, 240 - Riverdale, Ga./Alpharetta
Cacok recorded his league-leading 18th double-double with team-highs of 25 points and 16 rebounds in UNCW’s 90-70 victory over Hofstra last Saturday. The junior forward hit his first 10 shots from the floor and finished 11-of-13. Cacok, who leads the nation in rebounding (13.4 rpg), topped the 20-mark for the 9th time this season and had his 19th game with at least 10 boards.
CAA MEN'S BASKETBALL PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
Grant Riller • College of Charleston
So., G, 6-3, 195 - Ocoee, Fla./Ocoee
Riller averaged 26.5 points while shooting 66.7% from the floor and 7-of-11 from three in Charleston’s 2-0 week. The sophomore guard scored a career-high 37 points, which was two shy of the CofC single-game record, in an 82-77 win over William & Mary and added 16 points in an 89-67 victory over Drexel. Riller also added five steals and four assists as the Cougars extended their winning streak to eight.
CAA MEN'S BASKETBALL ROOKIE OF THE WEEK:
Ryan Allen • Delaware
Fr., G, 6-2, 195 - Bowie, Md./DeMatha Catholic
Allen averaged 22.0 points while shooting 48.6% from the floor last week. The freshman guard was UD’s top scorer in both games with 19 points vs. Northeastern and 25 points at William & Mary. He made a career-best six 3-pointers at W&M. Allen, who has scored double figures in 11 straight games, set the UD freshman record for threes in a season with 69.
CONFERENCE NOTES:
CHARLESTON STAYS ATOP CAA STANDINGS: Charleston stayed atop the CAA standings at 11-3 after victories over William & Mary (82-77) and Drexel (89-67) last week that increased its winning streak to eight. The Cougars hold a one-game lead over Northeastern, which posted road wins at Delaware (70-67) and Towson (77-62) and improved to 10-4. Charleston is on the road against JMU and UNCW this week, while Northeastern hosts Drexel and third-place William & Mary (9-5).
30-POINT PRODUCERS: Five different players scored at least 30 points in the eight CAA games last week. Charleston’s Grant Riller (37), W&M’s Justin Pierce (33), Drexel’s Tramaine Isabell (32), Towson’s Mike Morsell (31) and Charleston’s Jarrell Brantley (30) all reached the mark. For the season, 13 different players have combined for 28 efforts of 30 points or more.
PILING UP THE WINS: Charleston improved to 20-6 overall last Saturday, marking the first time since 2009-10/2010-11 that the Cougars have reached the 20-win plateau in back-to-back seasons. Northeastern moved to 10-4 in league play, marking the first time the Huskies have posted double-digit CAA wins since 2014-15.
JMU RESCHEDULES TWO GAMES: James Madison has rescheduled two games which were postponed last week (Feb. 8 and 10) due to cases of mumps affecting the team. The Dukes will host UNCW on Tuesday, Feb. 13 and visit Elon on Monday, Feb. 26.
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 UNCW having four and James Madison and Towson playing in three. Of the 68 CAA games played thus far, 10 have gone to overtime and 23 others have been decided by six points or less.
FOUR TEAMS IN TOP 112 OF RPI: Four CAA teams are ranked in the top 112 of the latest NCAA RPI through games of Feb. 11. Charleston leads the way at #73, followed by Northeastern at #75, William & Mary at #98 and Hofstra at #112. The CAA is one of 11 conferences (American, ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Conference USA, Missouri Valley, Mountain West, Pac 12, and SEC) with four teams ranked in the top 112. The CAA is ranked 12th out of the nation’s 32 Division I conferences.
HOME COURT ADVANTAGE: Home teams are 40-28 (.588) in CAA play so far, but Charleston (8-0) is the only squad that is still unbeaten. Northeastern (6-2), William & Mary (5-2), and Hofstra (5-3) are the only teams with winning records on the road. For the season, CAA teams are a combined 79-36 at home and also have 12 victories on neutral courts.
CHARLESTON EXTENDS WINNING STREAKS: Charleston has won 15 consecutive games at TD Arena dating back to last season. That home court win streak is tied for the 6th-longest in the nation through games of Feb. 11. The Cougars have also won eight straight games overall, which is tied for the 9th-longest streak nationally.
LIGHTING UP THE SCOREBOARD: Offenses have taken center stage in conference play. Through the first 68 league games, the winning team has scored at least 80 points in 42 of them. Seven squads are averaging 76.4 ppg or more in CAA action. Shooting percentages have been impressive as well. Seven teams are shooting better than 46.3% from the floor, six are hitting at least 36.3% from 3-point range, and four squads are shooting better than 74% 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 scorers through games of Feb. 11. There are also just three seniors among the CAA’s top 10 in rebounding.
UNCW’S CACOK LEADS NATION IN REBOUNDING: UNCW’s Devontae Cacok leads the nation in rebounding (13.4 rpg) and Hofstra’s Rokas Gustys ranks 4th (11.8 rpg) through games of Feb. 11. Cacok has grabbed at least 10 rebounds in 19 of 25 games and is also 2nd in the nation with 18 double-doubles. Several other CAA players are among the nation’s top 20 statisically. W&M’s David Cohn ranks 12th in assists (6.7 apg) and 10th in FT percentage (90.7%). Drexel’s Austin Williams is 9th (3.0 bpg) in blocks. W&M’s Connor Burchfield is 1st in 3-point FG percentage (52.5%) and Elon’s Tyler Seibring is 20th (44.9%).
WRIGHT-FOREMAN EXTENDS SCORING STREAK: Hofstra junior Justin Wright-Foreman, who leads the CAA and ranks fifth in the nation in scoring with 24.5 ppg, extended his double-digit scoring streak to 48 games last week. The streak is the fourth-longest active streak in the nation. Wright-Foreman has scored 20 or more points 21 times this season and has topped the 30-point mark in six games. He’s the first player since Towson’s Gary Neal in 2007 to score 35 or more points in three CAA games in a season.
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 (44.2%) and free throw percentage (80.0%), 6th in field goal percentage (50.8%), 6th in 3-pointers per game (11.1) and 14th in scoring (84.9 ppg).
HOFSTRA’S GUSTYS RANKS 2ND ON CAA’S CAREER REBOUNDS LIST: Hofstra senior Rokas Gustys ranks second on the CAA’s career rebounds list. With 1,240 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 and is the all-time leading rebounder in Hofstra history.
COHN BECOMES W&M CAREER ASSISTS LEADER: David Cohn has become William & Mary’s career assists leader with 450, surpassing the previous mark of 409 set by Scott Coval (1983-86). Cohn, who leads the CAA with 6.7 apg this season, is also just one assist shy of Coval’s single-season record of 168 assists set in 1985.
Charleston (20-6, 11-3 in CAA)
• Beat W&M (82-77) and Drexel (89-67) last week to extend their overall winning streak to 8 games and home winning streak to 15.
• Grant Riller scored a career-high 37 points vs. W&M, including 28 in the first half, on 13-of-19 FG shooting and 5-of-8 from 3. He was 2 points shy of the CofC Div. I record.
• Jarrell Brantley averaged 24.5 ppg last week, including a career-best 30 points vs. DU. He shot 62% from the floor and 6-of-8 from 3. He’s scored 20+ points in 7 of 16 games.
• Joe Chealey has scored double digits in 14 of his last 15 games and ranks 5th on CofC’s all-time points list.
• Nick Harris scored a career-high 21 points on 9-of-10 FG shooting vs. Drexel.
• CofC had 16 assists and only 1 turnover vs. Drexel. CofC leads the CAA with 9.5 tpg.
• CofC leads the CAA in scoring defense (66.8 ppg) and is 2nd in FG% defense (42.5%).
• CofC reached the 20-win mark for the second year in a row.
Delaware (11-16, 4-10 in CAA)
• Dropped games to Northeastern (70-67) and William & Mary (83-66) last week.
• Ryan Allen hit a career-high 6 treys and scored 25 points at W&M and had 19 points vs. NU. He’s reached double figures in 11 straight games and has been UD’s top scorer in 7 of the past 8 contests. Allen has set a UD freshman record with 69 three-pointers.
• Eric Carter recorded his 8th double-double with 14 points and a team-high 10 rebounds vs. NU. He added 12 points and 8 rebounds at W&M and has scored double digits in 5 straight games.
• Skye Johnson posted his first career double-double at W&M with career-highs of 17 points and 10 rebounds. He’s averaging 10.2 ppg and 5.8 rpg over his last 5 games.
• Chyree Walker tallied 9 points vs. NU, which was his top scoring effort since Dec. 28.
• Ryan Daly has missed the past 5 games with an ankle injury. He’s scored double figures in 20 straight games. Daly ranks in the top 15 in the CAA in scoring, rebounds and steals.
Drexel (11-16, 5-9 in CAA)
• Fell 94-92 in OT to Towson and 89-67 at Charleston last week.
• Tramaine Isabell scored a team-high 32 points with 7 rebounds and 6 assists vs. TU and had 17 points at CofC. It was his 4th 30-point outing of the season. He ranks among the CAA’s top 7 in scoring, rebounding, assists and steals.
• Kurk Lee averaged 15.0 ppg last week, including 20 points vs. Towson. He’s scored double figures in four straight games.
• Austin Williams, who ranks 2nd in the CAA in FG%, 5th in rebounds and 1st in blocks, missed the CofC game with a foot injury.
• Alihan Demir averaged 14.0 ppg and 7.5 rpg in the two games last week. He was 11-of-18 from the floor, including 4-of-7 from 3.
• Drexel shot 47.5% from the floor last week, but went just 14-of-49 from 3-point range.
• Freshman Tadas Karainas scored 8 points and blocked 2 shots at Charleston. He was 3-of-3 from the floor and made two treys.
Elon (14-12, 6-7 in CAA)
• Suffered a 67-48 setback to Hofstra last Thursday. Elon led 28-24 at halftime.
• Tyler Seibring scored a team-high 16 points and grabbed 8 rebounds against Hofstra. He’s reached double digits in 14 straight games and is averaging 18.6 ppg and 7.5 rpg while shooting 53.8% from the floor and 48.1% from 3 in CAA play.
• Dainan Swoope is averaging 16.3 ppg over his last 3 games. He has 8 20-point outings this season and over 1,000 career points.
• Dmitri Thompson chipped in 8 points vs. Hofstra and has scored double figures in 12 of his last 14 contests.
• Steven Santa Ana added 9 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists vs. Hofstra.
• Starting forward Brian Dawkins (12.0 ppg/5.6 rpg) didn’t play against Hofstra due to a hand injury.
• Elon only made 5 threes vs. Hofstra, which was its fewest since Dec. 7. The Phoenix have hit 10+ treys in 18 games and are averaging 10.7 threes per game for the year.
Hofstra (15-11, 8-6 in CAA)
• Split a pair of road games last week, winning 67-48 at Elon before a 90-70 loss at UNCW.
• Justin Wright-Foreman contributed 21 points at Elon and 15 points at UNCW. He’s scored double digits in 48 straight games, has tallied 20+ points in 21 games and has topped 30 points six times.
• Rokas Gustys grabbed 20 rebounds at Elon, which was the 10th career 20-rebound effort, and posted his 11th double-double (13 pts/10 reb) of the season at UNCW. He’s Hofstra’s all-time leading rebounder (1,240) and is 2nd on the CAA’s career list. He has 17 games with 10+ boards this season.
• Eli Pemberton scored a team-high 27 points at Elon and has reached the 20-point mark in three of his last four contests.
• Desure Buie added 11 points at UNCW and is averaging 9.0 ppg over his last 8 games.
• Hofstra held Elon to 35.8% FG shooting, including 5-of-24 from 3-point range.
• Hofstra has had nine games decided by 3 points or less and another game go to OT.
James Madison (7-18, 3-9 in CAA)
• Had both games postponed last week due to cases of mumps affecting the team. Ten of JMU’s 12 CAA contests have been decided by single digits or in OT.
• Stuckey Mosley averaged 28.5 ppg in JMU’s last two games, including 35 points vs. Towson. He’s reached double digits in 18 straight games, has topped the 20-point mark 12 times and has 3 30-point efforts.
• Matt Lewis tied a career-high with 26 points and added 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals at Drexel on Feb. 1. He’s scored at least 13 points in 11 straight games and is averaging 16.1 ppg in CAA play.
• DeVelle Phillips tied a career-high with 17 points on 8-of-9 FG shooting and grabbed 8 rebounds vs. Towson on Feb. 3. He’s shooting 64.5% from the floor in CAA play.
• JMU shot 59.4% and scored 52 points in the 2nd half at DU and shot 61.5% and tallied 50 points in the 2nd half vs. Towson.
• JMU didn’t commit a turnover over the final 12 minutes in the win against Towson on Feb. 3.
UNCW (8-17, 5-8 in CAA)
• Defeated Hofstra, 90-70, last Saturday before a sellout crowd at Trask Coliseum.
• Devontae Cacok posted his 18th double-double with 25 points on 11-of-13 FG shooting and 16 rebounds vs. Hofstra. He leads the nation in rebounding and ranks 2nd in double-doubles.
• Ty Taylor just missed a double-double with 16 points and 9 boards vs. Hofstra. He’s averaging 19.0 ppg over his last 3 games.
• Jordon Talley added 13 points vs. Hofstra. He’s 11th in the CAA in scoring and 2nd in assists, and has recorded double digits in 23 of the last 24 games with 8 20-point efforts.
• Freshman Jay Estime’ hit 3-of-5 treys and scored 12 points vs. Hofstra. It was his 3rd double-digit effort in CAA play.
• Jacque Brown dished out a career-high 7 assists with no turnovers against Hofstra.
• UNCW committed only 8 turnovers vs. Hofstra and is averaging 7.3 tpg over its past three contests.
Northeastern (17-9, 10-4 in CAA)
• Improved to 6-2 in CAA road games after victories at Delaware (70-67) and Towson (77-62) last week.
• Vasa Pusica was NU’s top scorer with 27 points at UD and 23 at TU. He shot 60% from the floor and was 9-of-16 from 3. He’s reached double digits in 21 of the last 22 games, has 11 20-point efforts and is in the CAA’s top 10 in points and assists.
• Donnell Gresham went 3-for-4 from three and tallied 17 points at UD. He has 5 double-figure efforts in the past 7 games.
• Devon Begley tied his season-high with 14 points at Towson and also had 8 rebounds.
• Bolden Brace hit two treys and chipped in 10 points at Towson. He’s made 20-of-40 threes (50%) over the past 10 games.
• NU made 11 treys at UD and hit 10-of-19 from beyond the arc at Towson.
• NU held UD and TU to combined 4-of-23 three-point shooting last week. The Huskies lead the league in 3-pt FG% defense (30.4%) in CAA play.
Towson (17-10, 7-7 in CAA)
• Rallied from an 18-point 2nd-half deficit to earn a 94-92 OT victory at Drexel, but lost 77-62 to Northeastern.
• Mike Morsell poured in a season-high 31 points at DU, including 8 in OT, and added 17 points vs. NU. It was his 4th career 30-point effort. He’s scored double figures in 9 straight games and has moved up to 9th on Towson’s career scoring list.
• Zane Martin tallied 25 points at DU and followed with a team-high 21 points vs. NU. He’s reached double digits in 21 straight games and has 16 20-point outings.
• Eddie Keith contributed 19 points and a team-high 8 rebounds at Drexel. It was his 8th double-digit effort in CAA play.
• Justin Gorham averaged 6.0 ppg and 7.5 rpg last week. He leads TU with 6.1 rpg.
• Towson overcame a double-digit deficit to win for the 6th time this year at Drexel.
• Towson leads the CAA in FG% defense and rebound margin and is 2nd in 3-point FG% defense.
William & Mary (16-9, 9-5 in CAA)
• Fell 82-77 at Charleston, but rebounded for an 83-66 win over Delaware last week.
• Nathan Knight poured in a team-high 29 points at CofC and posted his 8th double-double (11 pts/10 reb) vs UD. It was his 10th 20-point effort of the season. He’s among the top 6 in the CAA in scoring, rebounding, FG% and blocks.
• Justin Pierce scored a career-high 33 points vs. UD and had 9 points and 9 rebounds at CofC. He’s averaging 22.8 ppg and 9.7 rpg over the past six games.
• David Cohn dished out 11 assists with only 1 TO vs. UD. It was his 5th game with 10+ assists. He tops the CAA with 6.7 apg.
• Connor Burchfield hit 2-of-4 treys and tallied 12 points at CofC. He tops the CAA in 3-pt FG% and is 2nd in 3’s per game.
• Paul Rowley was 5-of-7 from 3-point range last week. He’s shooting 45.7% from the arc.
• W&M shot 50% vs UD and is 14-2 when shooting 50% or better from the floor.
• W&M leads the CAA in scoring, FG%, FT%, 3-point FG% and 3-pointers per game.