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williams_caa
53
Col. of Charleston COFC (9-24)
79
Winner UNCW UNCW (18-12)
Col. of Charleston COFC
(9-24)
53
Final
79
UNCW UNCW
(18-12)
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Col. of Charleston COFC 25 28 53
UNCW UNCW 36 43 79

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | Joe Browning

Seahawks Crush Charleston, 79-53, To Advance To CAA Semifinals

UNCW-CofC Photo Gallery

BALTIMORE, Maryland – Seniors Cedrick Williams and Freddie Jackson poured in 19 points apiece as No. 2-seeded UNCW blew past No. 10 College of Charleston, 79-53, on Saturday to advance to the semifinals of the 2015 Colonial Athletic Association Men's Basketball Championship at Royal Farms Arena.
 
The Seahawks raised their record to 18-12 overall with their third victory in as many tries this season against their southern neighbors in the CAA. It was the largest margin of victory for either team in the 18-game series.
 
The Cougars, who lost their fourth straight to UNCW, ended their inaugural season under Earl Grant with a 9-24 scorecard.
 
UNCW will now face the winner of Saturday's late game between No. 3 Northeastern and No. 6 Delaware on Sunday at 5 p.m.
 
The Seahawks won for the fifth time in seven games to reach the semifinals of the CAA Tournament for the 19th time in 30 appearances.
 
Williams, a 6-9 skyscraper from Murfreesboro, Tenn., posted his fourth double-double of the season and the eighth of his career with 19 points and 13 rebounds, while the smooth Jackson made 8-of-13 shots and 3-of-5 from deep for his 19 points. Senior guard Addison Spruill added 12 points and eight boards and junior guard Craig Ponder chipped in 11 points, four rebounds and four assists.
 
Sophomore guard Joe Chealey was high man for the Charleston with 12 points. Leading scorer Canyon Barry was held to nine points on just 4-of-13 shooting for the Cougars, who struggled with UNCW's pressure defense and finished at 32.8 percent on the night.
 
"I'm really proud of our guys," said UNCW's Kevin Keatts, the 2015 CAA Coach-of-the-Year. "I told them that they're really 2-0 here since we got a bye. We're a very good shooting team when we don't take challenged shots. We shared the basketball really well tonight."
 
The Seahawks, who shot 65.4 percent and outscored the Cougars by 15 points in the second half, wound up with 15 assists on 31 baskets.
 
After building a 36-25 advantage at the break, the Seahawks continued the onslaught in the second half by converting four of their first six field goal attempts and coasting down the stretch. All 11 players who dressed for UNCW saw action and nine scored in the 18th meeting between the two rivals.
 
A bank shot from the left side by Ponder staked the Seahawks to a 40-27 advantage before the Cougars answered with consecutive baskets by Barry and Anthony Stitt to close the gap to 40-31 with just over 16 minutes remaining.
 
But the Seahawks reeled off 14 straight points behind Jackson and Williams to extend the margin to 54-31 before shifting into cruise control. Jackson scored eight points in the spurt and his high-flying layup 12:12 pushed the lead to 54-31.
 
UNCW recorded its largest lead of the contest with 1:37 remaining when reserve forward Dylan Sherwood connected on a nifty leaner on the right elbow for a 77-48 bulge.
 
The Seahawks opened Friday's game slowly, missing their first four field goal attempts, before picking up steam and cruising to a 36-25 lead at halftime.
 
After Chealey scored a pair of buckets to give the Cougars a quick 4-0 advantage, Williams went to work to key a 15-4 spurt as the Seahawks took control. Williams had seven points in the spurt and Jackson's gliding layup at 11:48 gave UNCW a 15-8 edge.
 
The lead swelled to as many as 13 points in the first half when Jackson drained his first three-pointer of the game at 1:27 for a 36-23 cushion. Evan Bailey's jumper with the shot clock winding down sliced the lead to 36-25 and the Cougars had a chance to get closer, but Barry's triple as time expired was ruled after the buzzer.
 
GAME NOTES: The Seahawks won the rebounding battle, 39-37….UNCW scored 36 points in the paint on the night…UNCW outscored CofC, 43-28, in the second half….Williams rocked the rims for three dunks in the second half…It was UNCW's first victory in Baltimore after the Seahawks fell in a first-round game one year ago…UNCW is now 33-25 lifetime in the CAA Tournament…The Seahawks own an 8-4 record at the No. 2 seed…Head Coach Kevin Keatts used the same starting lineup for the ninth straight game…The win was Kevin Keatts' first at the CAA Tournament…UNCW shot 43.8 percent in the first half and 65.4 percent in the second period…CofC had 16 offensive rebounds…Freshman playmaker Jordon Talley was saddled with two early fouls and played just 17 minutes.




 
 
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