CofC Escape With 67-62 Over Presbyterian

The College of Charleston men’s basketball team headed to Clinton SC Tuesday night with a seven game winning streak and an 8-1 record. Despite Presbyterian hosting the matchup, sporting a 2-7 record overall, and down two starters the Blue Hose gave the Cougars all they could handle as Charleston escaped with a 67-62 win, extending their winning streak to eight games.

With their lone loss to previously number one ranked North Carolina, the College of Charleston were riding on a high before they faced Presbyterian. Fresh off a 22 point (79-57) win over crosstown rival The Citadel, CofC radio host Everett German admitted CofC didn’t play their best basketball, but were fortunate to leave the Templeton Center with the victory. Cougar head coach Pat Kelsey came away with the same assessment. “Give them (Presbyterian) credit, they were amped up and ready for us.”

Ryan Larson and Raekwon Horton lead the Cougar attack with 15 points apiece. Horton as he’s done recently hit some key shots down the stretch, finishing 3 of 4 from beyond the arc. Charleston got 33 points from their bench with Pat Robinson III chipping in 12 for the winning team. CofC outpaced Presbyterian on the glass, hauling in 37 rebounds (13 offensive) leading to 12 second chance points.

Charleston fell behind early in the contest as Presbyterian were desperate to erase a 13 point (76-63) loss to Wofford last Thursday and get back on a winning track. CofC jumped out to an early 4-0 lead before the Blue Hose put together a 16-4 run capped off by a dunk by Winston Hill to find the host team up 16-8 with under 14 minutes remaining in the first half.

Presbyterian would maintain the lead over the next eight minutes with CofC’s Horton connecting from beyond the arc to allow the visitors to take the lead 26-24 with 5:34 remaining. Kobe Stewart would answer from long range for the Bluehose with Charleston closing out the period on a 6-0 run for a slim 32-27 advantage at the break.

Over nine minutes in the second half Charleston held a one or two possession lead before a Larson jumper provided Charleston a 48-41 margin with 11 minutes on the clock. Presbyterian would cut the lead to three on two occasions until a late surge by the Cougars found CofC up by 10 (61-41) at the 5:30 mark.

Another trey by Horton with 2:23 left kept Charleston up by eight. Although not stellar from the free throw line (20 of 31), the Cougars managed to make a few in the final minute that provided a two possession margin, getting a little help from turnovers and missed attempts by the Bluehose. Charleston improve to 9-1 overall keeping an eight game win streak intact.

The final stats weren’t impressive for either team with the Cougars besting the Blue Hose with a couple more 3-pointers. Despite fouling out Hill lead the Blue Hose with a game best 19 points, going 7 of 11 from the floor and 5 of 8 from the charity stripe. Marquis Barnett was the only other Blue Hose member in double figures with 14 points including 2 of 2 from down town. Presbyterian fall to 2-8 on the season.

After two straight road contests, the Cougars return to the friendly confines of TD Arena on November 11 when North Greenville comes to Charleston. The game will serve as Kids Day where Youth Tickets are available for just $10, and all kids are invited to participate in a post-game autograph session with the team.