CofC Hold Off Drexel for 79-75 Win

Nick Farrar Scores Team Best 17 Pts Off the Bench, CofC Improve to 6-6 in CAA

By: Jeff Walker, Sportswriter

After falling on the road to top ranked UNCW on Saturday and putting an end to a three-game win streak, the College of Charleston men’s basketball team were hoping to rebound Monday night hosting Drexel. The Dragons came into TD Arena one game above (7-6) .500 in the CAA, with the Cougars one game under at 5-6.

Up by 11 points at the half, Charleston managed to hold off a late charge by Drexel pulling out a 79-75 win over the Dragons. Nick Farrar came in off the bench to lead the Cougars with a team best 17 points, shooting 7 of 10 from the floor including 3 of 4 from long range. Strong output in 15 minutes of action.

Although Farrar has been up and down when it comes to scoring, he relishes in being a go to guy. “I think I can go and get a bucket. I think we all know that. The coaching staff knows that. I think my teammates do a great job of finding me the ball. That’s kind of my job to go and score, to be that energy guy for us. To get us going when we’re not.”

The Charleston bench accounted for 37 points overall, with Babacar Faye and Brenden Tucker finishing with nine each. Starters Reyne Smith and John Meeks scored 15 and 13 points respectively for the winning team. The Cougars improve to 14-10 overall and 6-6 in league play.

During the month of February, the Cougar bench has outpaced their opponents by 22 points. CofC head coach Pat Kelsey admits his players are among the best in college basketball. “We get as much production off the bench as anyone in the country. We’re very deep. We play a lot of guys. It’s just fun in different games to see different guys make contributions and step up.”

Kelsey agrees Farrar has grown during the season. “I’ve seen tremendous growth with Nick throughout the year, in areas you guys might not even see. Behind the scenes in scouting, details, preparation, and execution. All those things that are very important in being an effective División I player.

CofC faithful had to remain on their feet for nearly four minutes before the Cougars lit up the scoreboard. The team couldn’t establish any rhythm early in the contest. There was a lot of action but nothing to show for it. A couple of long balls by Drexel allowed the visitors to take an 8-0 lead before Brenden Tucker hit with a short jumper to erase the Charleston goose egg.

When Tucker and Smith connected from long range followed by a layup by John Meeks the Cougars took the lead, up 25-24 with 4:20 remaining in the half. Their explosiveness continued as CofC ended the period on a 20-2 run that found them up 37-26 heading into the locker room at the break.

Unfortunately, the second half started out much like the first for Charleston. Drexel scored eight unanswered and found themselves back in contention. Five minutes into the period the Dragons outpaced the Cougars 13-4 to pull within two (41-39). The best Charleston could do is maintain a one or two possession margin over the next six minutes of play.

When Drexel’s Coletrane Washington hit from beyond the arc with 8:10 showing on the clock, the visitors were within one (58-57). Charleston would push the lead to nine (71-62) behind a four-minute 13-5 run. Forced to foul the Cougars put the ball in the hands of their best free throw shooters including Smith whose 95 percent is among the best in the nation. Smith would make 3 of 4, giving the Cougars a 77-74 advantage with 21 ticks on the clock.

There was a bit of excitement when Washington was fouled from long range with just over a second remaining. The Dragons sure footed guard who went of 7 of 10 on the night including 6 of 9 from long range missed the first free throw. After hitting the second, he was left with trying to miss the third to see if any last second rebound would allow for a score, instead leading to a foul that allowed Dimitrius Underwood to add two points to the Cougar total.

Besides Washington, Drexel had two other players finish in double figures with Camryn Wynter and Melik Martin adding 13 and 12 points respectively. With the loss the Dragons fall to 12-12 on the year and 7-7 in the CAA.

The Cougars continue their 3-game homestand when they host James Madison on Thursday night at TD Arena. Fans are encouraged to wear black for the annual Black Out Game. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. ET on FloSports. They close their home game schedule out with Towson Saturday at 4pm, before hitting the road for the remaining four CAA games.

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