Note: The following was written by Todd Vinyard who will be blogging throughout the 2015-16 basketball and wrestling season as teams prepare to head to Asheville, N.C. in March.
Tip Ins To The Tourney
From Lexington, Va. to Birmingham and all SoCon points in between …
The 2015-16 Southern Conference basketball season has taken the floor. Men’s teams came out strong at home with an 8-0 record. On the women’s side, several experienced squads are looking to take on defending SoCon champion and nationally ranked Chattanooga (No. 24 in The Associated Press poll) for the top spot.
With help from the Southern Conference media relations offices, teams and news sources from around the league, here are some quick tip ins on the road to the 2016 Southern Conference Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships presented by General Shale in March in Asheville, N.C.
The Citadel – One thing we know for sure from week one – the Bulldogs can score. The Citadel set a new school record for points in a single game during a 132-60 victory over Mid-Atlantic Christian on Nov. 19. Quayson Williams poured in a game-high 30 points and had a school record-breaking 10 three-pointers.
East Tennessee State – ETSU junior Shamauria Bridges led the charge of breaking the women’s team two-game losing streak in a 69-44 victory over Brevard (Nov. 21). Bridges scored a career-high 30 points behind 11-of-20 shooting from the field and 7-of-12 from three-point line. … Bucs football coach Carl Torbush like what he sees in new ETSU men’s coach Steve Forbes’ squad. “Steve’s got them playing hard and playing fast,” Torbush said in the Johnson City Press. Indeed. ETSU’s Ge’Lawn Guyn nailed a 3-pointer with one second left to beat Georgia Tech 69-68 November 22nd in Atlanta. It was the first Buccaneer win over an Atlantic Coast Conference opponent since 1991.
Furman – Behind 10 3-pointers the Furman women’s basketball team topped the Clemson Tigers 70-49 Nov. 21 in Greenville. It is the fourth win in 27 meetings with the Tigers for the Paladins. Holli Wilkins led Furman with 14 points. … A new face in the SoCon, Furman Freshman Matt Rafferty, had a big night against an old member Appalachian State with 19 points in a 79-70 win Nov. 17 in Boone, N.C. Four Paladins were in double figures.
Mercer – The Bears men’s basketball team did it all in a 70-49 win over Alabama State in November. They held Alabama State, a team that has beaten Virginia Tech, to a season-low 49 points on 16-of-52 shooting. … The Southern Conference Freshman of the year last season Kahlia Lawrence is off to a strong start as a sophomore. She has already won SoCon women’s basketball player of the week for games during Nov. 13-16. She is averaging 21.0 points per game.
UNCG - India Timpton is the only player in the SoCon women’s portion of the league to start out the year with multiple double-doubles. … Spartan men’s junior guard Diante Baldwin’s new number has brought some good on the court numbers with it. Since changing to No. 20 from No. 3, Baldwin scored 15 points, with five assists and four steals in an 86-69 season victory over Greensboro College.
Samford - Kassidy Blevins has already found the range early for Samford. She is 10 of 18 on 3-pointers. … Don’t ask the Bulldogs men’s team for any memories of the SoCon’s previous Tourney time in Asheville from 1984-1995. Eight of Samford’s 15 players are underclassmen, and only three of Samford’s 15 players were born before April 25, 1995, and the average age of a member of the Bulldogs’ team is 19.
Chattanooga – The Mocs men’s basketball team has two big wins early this season on its resume Georgia (92-90) and Illinois (81-77). Most important to UTC coach Matt McCall they are Ws. “... our guys showed unbelievable resiliency when things could have gone the other way.” McCall told the Chattanooga Times-Press. The Chattanooga women turned back Southern Miss in a 53-48 overtime victory as part of the WNIT Nov. 20. The Mocs women’s team will cap off a 18-day, eight game slate with a visit from reigning National Champion UConn on Monday, November 30th.
Virginia Military Institute - Dan Earl stared things off right at VMI with an 88-76 win over Tusculum. It was the first victory as a college head coach for Earl and ninth straight home opener victory for VMI. Earl and VMI opened the season with a 62-50 loss to Penn State. It is a familiar spot for Earl, who played and worked as an assistant coach for the Nittany Lions.
Western Carolina University - New Catamount women’s coach Stephanie McCormick started out with a 68-60 victory over Brevard. It was a team effort with 12 of WCU’s 13 players seeing action and 10 of the 12 scoring. McCormick has been with five different schools in her career and those teams have made nine postseason appearances. …. WCU men’s senior guard Mike Brown took men’s SoCon Player of the Week honors. Brown began the year with a career-high 26.0 points per game. He is part of an experienced Catamount club. Four of the five players who started WCU’s final game last season are back for 2015-16.
Wofford - CBS Sports ranked all 351 Division I men’s basketball teams with Wofford coming in at No. 66. The next highest was East Tennessee State at No. 72. CBS Sports said of Wofford: “Go ahead and look at what Mike Young’s put together with this program. The Terriers are legit.” … Wofford junior Kentra Washington may not get to play as an active player in the soon to be built Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium. But at the groundbreaking recently she suggested an alumni game in the new facility. "I'd probably be jealous if I wasn't so happy for my younger teammates and the future student-athletes who will compete in the Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium," Washington said. "We realize the significance of the gift the Richardson’s have given us.”
There are a few tip ins to get you up to speed with SoCon basketball storylines on the journey to Asheville. Remember to visit www.soconsports.com for scores, schedules, video and more. We’ll have more next week, including an update on Wrestling.
Have a Happy Thanksgiving with family and friends and we’ll see you back here next week with more on the journey to the tourneys.