College of Charleston Cougars 2010 NCAA Mens Basketball Post Season

<?xml:namespace prefix = st1 />College of Charleston Cougars

Southern Conference (21-11, 14-4)

Big Wins: 1/4 North Carolina (82-79), 1/22 Wofford (70-68), 2/17 Appalachian State (73-72)

Bad Losses: 12/23 at Hawaii (71-84), 1/28 at Davidson (71-86), 2/8 Citadel (65-72)

Coach: Bobby Cremins

Why They Can Surprise:

Live by the three and die by the three…that is certainly the case for the College of Charleston. When the Cougars knocked off North Carolina in January, they connected on over 40 percent of their 32 attempts from long range. When they lost to The Citadel in February, Coach Bobby Cremins’ team went a dismal 6-23 from long range. Andrew Goudelock is the most prolific outside shooter of the bunch. He hits nearly three long balls per game and leads the team with 19.4 points per game. He is also a solid distributor.

Tony White Jr. is much like Goudelock. He hits a bunch of three-pointers and can set up his teammates. White Jr. is not as effective of a scorer as Goudelock, but few players in the nation are. Donavan Monroe is yet another perimeter player who is a capable outside shooter. Monroe is also the most likely player to attack the basket and that is an important quality when those outside shots are not falling. Andrew Lawrence does not take many shots that are not three-pointers, but he is a typical shooter off the bench type of player. Casaan Breeden brings the outside shooting to the perimeter. Yet, the 6-8 senior does more than just shoot from long range and he is a decent shot blocker and rebounder.

Why They Can Disappoint:

With so many shooters, and so many shots, there is not much room on the floor for anybody who can rebound. The Cougars are one of the worst rebounding teams in the nation and have a rebound margin of -9.0. That is pretty awful and usually a team that gets outrebounded that bad is nowhere near the postseason. Jeremy Simmons is the lone big man who scores around the basket. His presence on the offensive end forces the opposing defense to collapse around him and that frees up the shooters on the perimeter. The 6-8 junior gets quite a few rebounds, but there is usually nobody around to help him. Goudelock is a decent rebounder for a guard and Breeden is not bad, but the frontcourt needs more bodies.

Who To Watch:

Those bodies could be Willis Hall and Matt Sundberg. Hall is an inconsistent freshman who works hard on the glass. At 6-6 is not the big guy this team needs, but he can at least be a decent backup power forward who can be just as productive as Breeden on the glass. Sundberg is 6-8, but lacks the strength to battle with most opposing big men in the paint. He is more of a perimeter threat who needs to add some weight to turn into an interior threat.

Probable Starters:

Andrew Goudelock, Junior, Guard, 19.4 ppg, 3.8 apg, 4.3 rpg

Tony White Jr., Senior, Guard, 11.8 ppg, 2.9 apg

Donavan Monroe, Junior, Guard, 12.4 ppg, 2.0 apg

Casaan Breeden, Senior, Forward, 7.8 ppg, 5.1 rpg

Jeremy Simmons, Junior, Forward, 11.8 ppg, 7.9 rpg, 2.0 bpg

Key Roleplayers:

Willis Hall, Freshman, Forward, 5.6 ppg, 3.3 rpg

Andrew Lawrence, Freshman, Guard, 4.7 ppg, 1.0 apg

Matt Sundberg, Sophomore, Forward, 2.6 ppg, 1.6 rpg

By the Numbers:

Scoring Offense: 74.4 (65^th in nation, 2^nd in conference)

Scoring Defense: 72.5 (271, 10)

Field-Goal Percentage: 45.6 (69, 2)

Field-Goal Defense: 44.2 (227, 9)

Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 9.4 (5, 1)

Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 36.6 (68, 3)

Free-Throw Percentage: 73.3 (32, 2)

Rebound Margin: -9.0 (332, 12)

Assists Per Game: 12.6 (197, 7)

Turnovers Per Game: 11.2 (21, 2)