#CAAHoops MBB Notebook - Jan. 2

#CAAHoops MBB Notebook - Jan. 2

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Miles McQuiggan

SCHEDULE AND RESULTS
Wednesday, December 28
UNCW 68, Monmouth 55 *
 
Thursday, December 29
Drexel 62, Elon 50 *
Hofstra 87, Delaware 73 *
Northeastern 88, North Carolina A&T 76 *
RV/RV Charleston 89, Hampton 61 *
 
Saturday, December 31
Stony Brook 65, Northeastern 61 *
RV/RV Charleston 76, Towson 74 (OT) *
North Carolina A&T 81, Hofstra 79
Delaware 57, Elon 52
Drexel 66, William & Mary 56
UNCW 82, Hampton 65
 
Wednesday, January 4
23/RV Charleston at North Carolina A&T * (CBSSN).......... 5 p.m.
UNCW at Elon * (FloHoops)...................................... 7 p.m.
 
Thursday, January 5
Drexel at Towson * (CBSSN)...................................... 7 p.m.
Northeastern at William & Mary * (FloHoops).............. 7 p.m.
Hofstra at Hampton * (FloHoops).............................. 7 p.m.
Stony Brook at Monmouth * (FloHoops)..................... 7 p.m.
 
Saturday, January 7
Monmouth at Drexel * (FloHoops)............................. 2 p.m.
Hofstra at William & Mary * (FloHoops)...................... 2 p.m.
UNCW at North Carolina A&T * (FloHoops).................. 2 p.m.
Northeastern at Hampton * (FloHoops)...................... 4 p.m.
Delaware at 23/RV Charleston * (CBSSN)........................ 5 p.m.
Towson at Stony Brook * (SNY, FloHoops)............... 6:31 p.m.
 
* - CAA game

WEEKLY AWARDS
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Amari Williams, Drexel
Junior | Forward | Nottingham, England / Myerscough College
Williams was Drexel’s anchor defensively in a pair of all-around performances to get the Dragons started 2-0 in CAA play. The junior from England tallied 10 points, 14 rebounds, six assists, four blocks, and one steal in Thursday’s 62-50 win over Elon before an effort of 18 points, nine rebounds, one assist, six blocks, and three steals in Saturday’s 66-56 victory against William & Mary.
 
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
Duncan Powell, North Carolina A&T
Redshirt Freshman | Forward | Dallas, Texas / DeSoto
Powell averaged 17.5 points and 9.5 rebounds per game while shooting 75% in a 1-1 week that included North Carolina A&T’s first league win as a CAA member. The redshirt freshman from Dallas tallied 17 points and nine rebounds in Thursday’s setback at Northeastern before a double-double of 18 points and 12 rebounds Saturday helped propel the Aggies to a last-second comeback win at Hofstra.
 
2022-23 CAA MEN’S BASKETBALL WEEKLY AWARD WINNERS
Player of the Week
Nov. 14: Nicolas Timberlake, Towson
Nov. 21: Aaron Estrada, Hofstra; Ryan Larson, Charleston
Nov. 28: Cam Holden, Towson
Dec. 5: Jyáre Davis, Delaware; Jordan Nesbitt, Hampton
Dec. 12: Jameer Nelson Jr., Delaware
Dec. 19: Jyáre Davis, Delaware
Dec. 26: Maleeck Harden-Hayes, UNCW
Jan. 2: Amari Williams, Drexel
 
Rookie of the Week
Nov. 14: Amar’e Marshall, Hofstra
Nov. 21: Amar’e Marshall, Hofstra
Nov. 28: Amar’e Marshall, Hofstra
Dec. 5: Jack Collins, Monmouth
Dec. 12: Amar’e Marshall, Hofstra
Dec. 19: Noah Ross, UNCW
Dec. 26: Max Mackinnon, Elon; Jared Turner, Northeastern
Jan. 2: Duncan Powell, North Carolina A&T
 
NEWS AND NOTES
THAT’S CALLED A WINNING STREAK
The CAA enters the day with two teams in the top 90 of the NET thanks to Charleston (49) and UNCW (86). Charleston (14-1) has won 13 straight with the only loss this year to North Carolina, while UNCW (12-3) has been victorious in 11 straight with its only setbacks this year against North Carolina, Oklahoma, and UConn.
 
STUDYING ON THE QUAD 
CAA teams hold nine wins that qualify as Quad 1 or Quad 2 in the NET. Charleston’s win over Kent State earns the Cougars a Q1 victory, while Hofstra has three Q2 wins (Iona, San Jose State, Princeton) and Charleston (Virginia Tech), UNCW (North Texas), Towson (UMass), Delaware (Princeton), and North Carolina A&T (Hofstra) each have one.
 
The CAA went 6-2 vs. both the Sun Belt and MAAC, 8-3 vs. the A10, and 7-3 vs. the SoCon this winter in addition to wins over the ACC and American.
 
#RANKCHARLESTON: CHECK
Charleston is No. 23 in this week’s AP Top 25, making the Cougars the first CAA team ranked in the AP poll since Navy in January 1987. George Mason was ranked in the coaches poll in 2006 and 2011 along with VCU in 2011.
 
Charleston is No. 2, UNCW is No. 18, and Hofstra and Towson are receiving votes in the most recent College Insider Mid-Major Top 25 with a new one Monday night. CAA teams will play 24 games against non-league foes ranked or receiving votes in that poll with five wins over the group.
   
ELEVEN FOR THE SEAHAWKS!
UNCW has won 11 straight games following Saturday’s victory over Hampton. The Seahawks have climbed 112 spots in KenPom, won the Baha Mar Hoops event, and defeated a member of The American during the streak. UNCW shot 51.4% in its first two league games while holding opponents to 39.3%.

DREXEL GETTING DEFENSIVE
Drexel’s 60.9 points per game allowed ranks 25th nationally and the Dragons have held their opponents under 60 in all eight victories. Drexel is 2-0 to start CAA play for the first time since 2006-07 after defeating Elon and William & Mary to begin its conference schedule.

KINGS OF KING STREET  
Charleston is 14-1 with wins over five NCAA Tournament teams and three defending conference champions (ACC, A10, SoCon), a title in the Charleston Classic, and the lone setback at preseason No. 1 North Carolina followed by a current 13-game winning streak. Charleston is the second team in CAA history to open the year 13-1 or better, joining the 1985-86 Richmond squad (16-1).

DELAWARE DUO PRODUCING
Delaware is 6-2 in its last eight games with victories over Davidson, Delaware State, Siena, Princeton, Rider, and Elon. Jameer Nelson Jr. has scored 20+ points in five of the eight while Jyáre Davis has added three 20-point outings. The duo has earned CAA Player of the Week honors for the Hens in three of the last five weeks.
 
WE LIKE A CHALLENGE
Three CAA teams rank among the top 50 most challenging non-conference schedules according to the NET. Hofstra has played the 32nd-toughest non-league slate in the nation, while North Carolina A&T ranks 42nd and UNCW 44th. NET calculations factor in results against Division I opponents.

EYE ON THE PRIZE
CBS Sports Network is the home of 18 CAA Men’s Basketball games this winter including the semifinals and title game of the CAA Championship. The 15-game regular season package includes at least one game for every CAA team and will feature John Fanta and Dave Ryan as play-by-play broadcasters and Tarik Turner, Terrence Oglesby, and Dr. John Giannini as analysts. Fanta will also join Karlie Smith for a weekly #CAAHoops breakdown on CAASports.com and @CAABasketball on Twitter.
   
GET LOW
Charleston had a successful National Signing Day, with Pat Kelsey and the Cougars staff inking what one site calculated as the nation’s top mid-major recruiting class.
 
At the time of Charleston’s announcement, 247 Sports ranked the group headed to the Lowcountry at No. 40.
 
WHOLE LOTTA WINS
The longest-tenured head coach in the CAA, Northeastern’s Bill Coen broke the Northeastern all-time wins record of 250, set by Jim Calhoun from 1972-86 in a 2021 CAA quarterfinal win over William & Mary. Coen is second in conference history in combined CAA and tournament wins with 176 (157 CAA wins, 19 tournament wins) and sits seven victories from tying Jim Larranaga for first in CAA history.
 
Towson’s Pat Skerry passed Hofstra’s Tom Pecora, James Madison’s Lefty Driesell, Delaware’s Monte’ Ross, Hofstra’s Joe Mihalich and UNCW’s Jerry Wainwright last season to move into seventh.
 
1.  183 Jim Larranaga, George Mason                      1998-11
2.  176 Bill Coen, Northeastern                           2006-pres.
3.  158 Bruiser Flint, Drexel                                   2002-16
4.  148 Blaine Taylor, Old Dominion                        2002-13
5.  138 Tony Shaver, William & Mary                       2004-19
6.  106 Dick Tarrant, Richmond                              1982-93
7.  101 Pat Skerry, Towson                                2011-pres.
8.  98   Tom Pecora, Hofstra                                  2002-10
    98   Charles “Lefty” Driesell, JMU                        1988-97
10. 97   Jerry Wainwright, UNCW                            1995-02
 
THE GAME IS ON
CAA teams will play on television over 60 times in the New York market this winter, 50-plus times in the Hampton Roads area, and 40 or more games in Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington.
 
welcome to the caa!
The CAA announced the addition of Campbell to the league for the 2023-24 season over the summer. The Camels, who will join from the Big South, are 5-9 on the year.
 
AND-ONES
One thing to know on each #CAAHoops team
  • Charleston has defeated three reigning conference champions and five NCAA Tournament teams this season and has two Q1/Q2 victories (Kent State, Virginia Tech).
  • Delaware has won six of its last eight games and is 9-0 this year when holding opponents under 70 points.
  • Drexel’s Amari Williams ranks in the top 50 nationally in the rate of both blocks (8.9%) and steals (4.3%) of possessions in his time on the floor.
  • Elon’s Sean Halloran is sixth in the nation in free throw percentage at 92.7%.
  • Hampton’s Marquis Godwin is averaging 15.7 points per game over his last six with 14+ in all of them.
  • Hofstra shot a league-best 53.8% in the opening weekend of league play.
  • Monmouth has played nine teams in the KenPom top 125 with a roster that ranks eighth in least Division I experience.
  • Tyrese Elliott’s tip-in at the buzzer lifted North Carolina A&T to its first CAA win on Saturday at Hofstra.
  • UNCW’s bench has outscored its opponent’s reserves in every game of the current 11-game winning streak and by at least 21 points in seven of the 11.
  • Northeastern’s 88 points in Thursday’s win were the Huskies’ most since scoring 88 in a victory at James Madison in December 2019.
  • Stony Brook’s Frankie Policelli leads the CAA with a 29.5% defensive rebounding rate is tied for the top spot in the league with five double-doubles.
  • Towson’s 36.3% offensive rebounding rate ranks 18th nationally.
  • William & Mary leads the CAA with a 36.4% three point field goal percentage.
ROCK THE #CAAHOOPS VOTE
Remember to exercise your right to vote for the Player of the Night winner following every week of league games  
The #CAAHoops Notebook is a weekly look around CAA Men's Basketball for conference fans, media, and more. Like it? Have suggestions for how to make it better? Email the writer at mmcquiggan@caasports.com or find him on Twitter @MilesMcQuiggan.

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