Cougars Suffer 2nd Straight Loss, Brzovic Shines With 27 Pts. & 11 Rebounds

Jeff Walker, Sports Writer

Despite a nine game winning streak coming to an end resulting in their first CAA loss, including their first defeat at home Thursday night, the College of Charleston men's basketball team travelled to UNC Wilmington hoping to rebound against the Seahawks. However, at 12-5 (3-2 CAA) overall UNCW headed into the contest unbeaten at Trask Coliseum this season.

Carrying a 13-5 record with them, and perhaps a bit of ire after falling to Towson 82-78 at TD Arena, the Cougars went into Wilmington on a mission to get back to their winning ways. Could the big cats clip the wings of the birds of prey. With UNCW coming off an 82-70 road win over Elon both squads had much to play for.

Despite a game high 27 points and 11 rebounds from Ante Brzovic, when the final stats were placed in the books, UNCW came out on top downing CofC 78-69 before a national audience on CBS Sports. The defeat delivered the Cougars their second consecutive loss, while UNCW remain unbeaten on their home court. Charleston fall to 13-6 overall and 4-2 in league play.

Both teams traded baskets early on, with neither enjoying more than a one possession advantage. Midway thru the opening period it was tied at 17 apiece, before the Cougars jumped out to a 27-22 lead with under six minutes remaining. They would enjoy the same five point margin (38-33) at the break.

A 3-pointer by Reyne Smith at the start of the second half gave the Cougars their biggest lead of the night. The Seahawks kept pace, slowly chipping away at the lead, trailing by one point (45-44) when KJ Jenkins connected from long range.

CofC would push it to seven on a couple of occasions before a short jumper by Shykeim Phillips made it 67-65 in favor of the home team, with 7:30 remaining. Four unanswered by Charleston would put them back on top. However, a series of missed 3-pointers and foul shots during the final five minutes of action combined with clutch free throws from the UNCW lead to a Seahawks victory.

After shooting near 50% in the first 20 minutes of play, including 5 of 10 from beyond the arc, the Cougars finished shooting 38% overall, adding just 3 of 19 from long range in the second half. Brzovic had help from Jordan Crawford who came in off the bench to go 4 of 7 from downtown to end with 12 points for the Cougars.

The Seahawks had three players in double figures with Jenkins leading the way with 20 points. Phillips added 18, with Trazarien White chipping in 17. UNCW improve to 13-5 overall and match the Cougars with a 4-2 record in the CAA.

CofC Head Coach Pat Kelsey said after the contest that the rivalry between the two schools is strong, and that UNCW won the game more than CofC lost it. The Cougars will have to get back to winning away from TD Arena, as they play the next two on the road, travelling to Hampton on Thursday and Campbell next Saturday. They return home to face the same Seahawks on Feb 1st.