CAA Men's Basketball Weekly Awards - Jan. 21
Rob Washburn
CAA MEN'S BASKETBALL WEEKLY REPORT - JAN. 21 (PDF format)
CAA Men’s Basketball Co-Player of the Week: Eli Pemberton, Hofstra, Jr., G, 6-5, 195, Middletown, Conn./Cheshire Academy
Pemberton averaged 25.0 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists as Hofstra extended the nation’s longest winning streak to 14 games and remained unbeaten in CAA play with two victories. The junior guard tallied a game-high 24 points with six rebounds in an 87-72 triumph over UNCW. He followed with a season-best 26 points and five boards as the Pride defeated Charleston, 86-72. For the week, Pemberton shot 58.6% from the floor, including 5-of-11 from 3-point range.
CAA Men’s Basketball Co-Player of the Week: Vasa Pusica, Northeastern. Sr., G, 6-5, 210, Belgrade, Serbia/Sunrise Christian Academy
Pusica averaged 21.0 ppg while shooting 70% from the floor and also contributed 6 assists and 5 steals as Northeastern went 2-0 in CAA play to increase its winning streak to four. The senior guard had a team-best 21 points, three assists and a season-high four steals in a 69-60 victory over Charleston. He followed with 21 points and three assists as the Huskies topped UNCW, 88-71. Along with his 14-of-20 shooting from the floor, Pusica was a perfect 11-of-11 at the free throw line.
CAA Men’s Basketball Rookie of the Week: Camren Wynter, Drexel, Fr., G, 6-2, 175, Hempstead, N.Y./Holy Trinity
Wynter had a solid all-around week, averaging 8.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 6.0 assists as Drexel won a pair of CAA games. The freshman guard dished out eight assists with no turnovers and added three points in a 72-66 win over Towson last Thursday. He followed with 14 points, five rebounds and four assists as the Dragons rallied past James Madison, 73-68, on Saturday. Wynter ranks second in the CAA in assists (5.1 apg) for the season and is contributing 10.1 ppg.
Conference notes:
HOFSTRA OWNS NATION’S LONGEST WIN STREAK: Hofstra is 17-3 overall and riding the nation’s longest winning streak at 14 games after Michigan and Virginia lost last Saturday. The Pride’s overall record after 20 games is its best-ever at the Division I level (since 1966-67). Hofstra received a vote in the
Associated Press Top 25 poll for the second straight week, was #36 in Andy Katz’s Power 36 and is #48 in the NCAA NET rankings.
PRIDE REMAINS UNBEATEN IN CAA PLAY: Hofstra sits atop the CAA standings at 7-0 and remains the only unbeaten team in league play following victories over UNCW and Charleston last week. The Pride is off to its best CAA start ever.
Northeastern, which is on a season-best four-game winning streak, has moved into second at 5-2.
Delaware, which has won five of its last seven, is third with a 5-3 mark.
RESULTS REVERSAL: Home teams went 4-0 last Thursday night, reversing the trend from the previous Thursday when road teams completed a four-game sweep. For the season, home teams are 21-15 in league action. Six squads have already recorded two conference victories on the road.
DOWN TO THE WIRE: Conference play has resulted in plenty of close games.
For the season, 17 of 36 CAA contests (47.2%) have been decided by seven points or less or in OT, including three games last Saturday.
COMEBACK KIDS: Drexel has won five games this season after trailing by double figures and the Dragons have been behind by at least 11 points in all four of their CAA wins.
HOFSTRA’S WRIGHT-FOREMAN KEEPS ROLLING: Hofstra’s
Justin Wright-Foreman is currently riding a 73-game double-digit scoring streak, which is the 2nd-longest active streak in Division I. He’s scored 20 or more points in 16 of 20 games, topped the 30-point mark six times and ranks third nationally with 26.2 ppg. Last season, the CAA Player of the Year was the first player since Towson’s Gary Neal in 2007 to score 35 or more points in three CAA games. Wright-Foreman’s 755 total points were the 7th-most in CAA history and his scoring average (24.4 ppg) was the highest by a CAA player since 2006-07.
UNCW’S CACOK JUMPS TO 4TH ON CAA’S CAREER REBOUNDS LIST: Devontae Cacok, who passed Keith Rendleman (1,055) to become UNCW’s all-time leading rebounder on Jan. 12, moved up to 4th on the CAA’s all-time rebounds list with 1,090. He needs 25 more to tie Navy’s Vernon Butler for third. This season, he tops the CAA and is 5th nationally with 11.7 rpg and leads Division I with 14 double-doubles. Last season, he led the nation and set a CAA season record with 13.5 rebounds per contest. In 2016-17, Cacok set an NCAA for field goal percentage by shooting 80% from the floor. On Nov. 18 of this season, Cacok broke his own UNCW record and tied the CAA single-game record with 26 rebounds in a win over Allen on Nov. 18.
BRANTLEY, RILLER CLIMB COFC CAREER LISTS: Charleston’s
Jarrell Brantley is just the 5th player in Charleston history to have at least 1,500 points (1,653) and 800 rebounds in a career (850). Junior
Grant Riller moved into 10th place on CofC’s career scoring chart (1,508), giving the Cougars two teammates among the school’s top 10 in scoring for the first time since the 1970’s.
SEIBRING ENTERS TOP 10 IN CAREER POINTS AT ELON: Tyler Seibring moved into 10th place on Elon’s career scoring list with 1,602 points. The senior forward also has 692 career rebounds and is just 43 shy of the top 10 in Phoenix history in that category. He would become Elon’s first Division I player to be among the top 10 in both categories.
Charleston
• Dropped road games at Northeastern (69-60) and Hofstra (86-72) last week.
• Grant Riller was CofC’s top scorer in both games with 24 points at HU and 17 at NU. He’s tallied 20+-points 13 times and has reached double figures in 15 straight games. Riller is 2nd in the CAA in scoring, 4th in assists, 5th in FG% and 6th in FT%.
• Jarrell Brantley posted his 6th double-double at HU with 19 points and 12 rebounds at HU and had 13 points at NU. He’s scored double digits in 25 straight games and is among the CAA’s top 5 in scoring, rebounds and FG%.
• Brevin Galloway hit 4-of-5 from 3-point range and scored 16 points at Hofstra. It was his 9th double-digit outing of the season.
• Freshman Jaylen Richard contributed 9 points and 2 steals off the bench at NU.
• CofC was 22-of-26 at the FT line last week and is shooting 75.8% for the season.
• The Cougars committed 32 TO’s in the two games last week. CofC entered the week averaging a league-low 10.5 tpg.
Delaware
• Split two home games last week, beating JMU (76-69), but falling to Towson (64-63).
• Ryan Allen hit 5-of-7 treys and scored a career-high 29 points vs. JMU and added 13 points vs. Towson. He’s averaging 18.8 ppg over the past five games.
• Eric Carter averaged 20.0 ppg and 8.5 rpg last week, including 26 points on 11-of-14 FG shooting and 9 boards vs. JMU. He’s among the top 5 in the CAA in scoring, rebounds and FG% and has posted 10 double-doubles.
• Darian Bryant tallied 13 points on 5-of-8 FG shooting vs. Towson. It was his 2nd-highest point total of the season.
• Ithiel Horton tops all CAA freshmen in scoring (12.9 ppg), has tallied double digits in 15 games and is shooting 41.4% from three.
• Delaware shot 56% from the floor vs. JMU, which was its 2nd-highest of the season.
• The Hens committed a season-low 2 turnovers vs. Towson and have had 10 or fewer TO’s in five of their past six games.
Drexel
• Overcame an 18-point deficit to top JMU (73-68) and erased an 11-point deficit to beat Towson (72-66). Drexel has won five games after trailing by double digits, including all four of its CAA victories.
• Alihan Demir averaged 15.0 ppg and 11.5 rpg last week, including his 5th double-double with 22 points and a career-high 16 rebounds vs. TU. He ranks among the CAA’s top 16 in scoring, rebounding and FG%.
• Troy Harper scored a team-high 22 points vs. JMU. He’s hit double figures in 16 straight games and has eight 20+-point outings.
• Jarvis Doles scored a career-high 16 points vs. TU, including a stretch of 13 straight points during a 2nd-half comeback.
• Trevor John leads the CAA with 68 threes (3.2 pg) and is shooting 41.5% from the arc.
• Freshman Camren Wynter dished out 8 assists with no turnovers vs. Towson and scored 14 points in the win over JMU.
• Drexel held its opponents to 36.8% FG shooting last week.
Elon
• Used a game-ending 9-0 run to rally past William & Mary, 76-71, last Saturday.
• Tyler Seibring hit 4-of-5 treys and scored a team-high 26 points at W&M. He’s had 20+ points in three straight games and is averaging 23.7 ppg and 7.3 rpg over that stretch. He’s now 10th on Elon’s career points list.
• Sheldon Eberhardt poured in a career-high 23 points at W&M, including a trey with 1:09 left that put Elon ahead for good. He’s reached double figures in five straight games and is averaging 13.6 ppg in that span.
• Steven Santa Ana added 12 points and a team-high 7 rebounds at W&M. He’s reached double digits in 15 straight games. Santa Ana is among the CAA’s top 10 in scoring and FG%.
• Freshman Kris Wooten had 8 points, 4 rebounds and 2 blocks at W&M. It was his most points since Dec. 30.
• Elon leads the CAA with 10.0 three-pointers per contest. The Phoenix have made at least seven treys in all but one game.
Hofstra
• Extended the nation’s longest winning streak to 14 games and moved to 12-0 at home by defeating UNCW (87-72) and Charleston (86-72) last week.
• Eli Pemberton had a game-high 24 points and 6 rebounds vs. UNCW and followed with a season-best 26 points vs. CofC. He’s averaging 21.7 ppg over his past 3 games.
• Justin Wright-Foreman added 19 points vs. UNCW and CofC and is averaging 28.7 ppg in CAA play. He has tallied 20+ points 16 times, and has six 30+-point efforts.
• Wright-Foreman has scored double figures in 73 straight games and ranks 8th on Hofstra’s career points list (1,902).
• Jalen Ray hit 4-of-5 treys and tallied 14 points vs. CofC. He’s 13-of-22 from 3-point range over the past five games.
• Jacquil Taylor averaged 11.0 ppg and 8.0 rpg last week while also blocking six shots.
• Desure Buie had 11 points, 7 assists and 4 steals vs. UNCW. He leads the CAA in steals (2.4 spg) and ranks 3rd in assists (5.1 apg).
James Madison
• Dropped road games at Delaware (76-69) and Drexel (73-68) last week. All five CAA losses have been by 7 points or less.
• Stuckey Mosley scored a game-high 25 points at Drexel and had a team-best 22 points at Delaware. He’s 7th in the CAA in scoring, 2nd in threes (63) and has made at least one trey in 23 straight games.
• Matt Lewis averaged 19.0 ppg and 4.5 apg last week, including 21 points at DU. He’s reached double digits in 13 of his last 14 games and is averaging 19.9 ppg in CAA play.
• Darius Banks added 11 points at UD. He’s hit 12-of-21 treys over his last 5 games and is shooting 50% from three for the season.
• Freshman Deshon Parker had a career-high 11 points and 2 steals at UD and followed with 8 points at Drexel. He’s averaging 8.0 ppg over his past four contests.
• JMU committed a season-low four turnovers at Delaware and made just 10 at Drexel. The Dukes have had 10 or fewer TO’s in four of the last five games.
UNCW
• Suffered road setbacks at Hofstra (87-72) and Northeastern (88-71) last week.
• Devontae Cacok posted double-doubles at HU (15 pts/10 reb) and NU (23 pts/13 reb) to increase his nation’s-best total to 14. He tops the CAA with 11.7 rpg and has recorded a double-double in all 7 conference games.
• Cacok is UNCW’s all-time leader in rebounds with 1,090. He ranks 4th on the CAA’s all-time list and needs 25 to move to 3rd place.
• Jeantal Cylla tallied a team-high 16 points at HU and scored 17 at NU. He’s averaging 16.5 ppg over his last four games.
• Kai Toews ranks 3rd nationally in assists (7.7 apg) and has dished out 10+ assists seven times this season.
• Ty Gadsen was 5-of-7 from 3-point range last week and averaged 12.5 ppg. He’s shooting a CAA-best 56.9% from beyond the arc.
• Freshman Jaylen Sims hit 2-of-4 treys and added 8 points at NU. He’s tallied 7 or more points in 5 of his last 9 games.
Northeastern
• On a season-best 4-game winning streak after victories over Charleston (69-60) and UNCW (88-71) last week.
• Vasa Pusica shot 70% from the floor and tallied a team-high 21 points in both games last week. He’s scored double digits in 8 straight games and is averaging 17.9 ppg in CAA play.
• Bolden Brace posted his 2nd double-double of the season with 14 points and a team-high 10 rebounds vs. CofC.
• Shawn Occeus averaged 16.0 ppg last week, including 20 points vs. UNCW. He’s averaging 15.6 ppg over his past 5 games.
• Jordan Roland tallied 17 points off the bench vs. UNCW. He’s made a team-high 52 treys and is shooting 41.3% from 3.
• Anthony Green contributed 9 points and 8 boards vs. CofC. He’s shooting 68.2% from the floor and is NU’s 2nd-leading rebounder.
• NU shot 68% from the floor in the 2nd half vs. CofC and 56.7% in the 2nd half vs. UNCW. NU leads the CAA in FG% (48.7%).
Towson
• Fell 72-66 at Drexel, but overcame an 18-point deficit to beat Delaware, 64-63, ending a 6-game slide.
• Brian Fobbs scored a team-high 21 points with 8 rebounds at Drexel and had 13 points and 7 boards at UD. He’s tallied double digits in 16 straight games and has been the Tigers’ leading scorer in 15 of the past 18 contests.
• Alex Thomas hit the game-winning shot at UD with 22 seconds left and finished with 9 points and 8 rebounds.
• Nakye Sanders posted his first double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds at Drexel.
• Tobias Howard scored all 10 of his points in the 2nd half at Delaware. He has five double-figure efforts in the past eight games.
• Freshman Allen Betrand hit 3-of-5 treys and scored a career-high 11 points at Drexel. He’s averaging 7.8 ppg in his past 4 outings.
• Towson tops the CAA in rebound margin (+5.7 rpg) and has only been out-rebounded twice in the past 16 games.
William & Mary
• Fell 76-71 to Elon last Saturday. Led by four with two minutes to play.
• Nathan Knight tallied 18 points and a career-high tying 14 rebounds vs. Elon for his 3rd double-double in the past four games. He’s among the CAA’s top 10 in scoring, rebounding, FG%, assists and blocks.
• Matt Milon scored a team-high 22 points vs. Elon. He’s reached double digits in 9 of his last 11 contests and has hit at least 4 threes in five of his past six games.
• Justin Pierce, who ranks 3rd in the CAA in rebounding and has 7 double-doubles, grabbed 8 rebounds but was held to a season-low 2 points vs. Elon.
• Chase Audige scored 13 points and made a career-high 4 steals vs. Elon. He’s averaging 11.7 ppg in CAA play.
• Luke Loewe scored a season-high 8 points and dished out four assists vs. Elon. He has 21 assists and just 6 TO’s in CAA play.
• W&M leads the CAA in assists and assist/TO ratio. The Tribe has had at least 20 assists in five of the past nine contests.