Charleston Team Report

GETTING INSIDE

The question at the College of Charleston is simple: Will this be Bobby Cremins’ best team in his four years at the school?

The answer appeared to be a definitive “yes” until the last week of September, when the team received some bad news. Junior forward Antwaine Wiggins will miss the season after tearing the ACL in his left knee. The school announced on its athletics Web site that Wiggins injured himself during a preseason workout.

How much that affects the Cougars, though, will remain to be seen. Wiggins was indisputably the team’s best defender, often drawing the toughest defensive assignments regardless of the opponents’ primary strength. He blocked 31 shots and had 37 steals last season.

Offensively, he averaged 8.3 points and 3.9 rebounds while starting every game.

Now, the Cougars might have to lean on their top-notch backcourt more than ever. Guards Andrew Goudelock and Tony White might comprise the best guard combo in the Southern Conference, and if the Cougars are going to challenge for the North Division title, it will likely be because of those two.

Replacing the offensive and defensive talents of Wiggins will probably fall into the hands of first-year expected starters Jeremy Simmons, a 6-foot-8, 230-pound junior, and Florida State transfer Casaan Breeden.

Simmons is the top returning rebounder on the team at 5.1 per game. Now, he will have to prove he can not only pick up his defensive game, but also that he can considerably improve upon the 6.8 points he averaged as a sophomore.

The rest off the inside support will have to come from a handful of inexperienced faces. If Cremins can find the right combination, and White and Goudelock perform to expectations, the Cougars might still find the answer they’re looking for.

NOTES, QUOTES

• The Cougars will start the 2009-2010 season with two 1,000-point scorers on the roster. G Andrew Goudelock (1,036 career points) eclipsed the plateau at the end of last season, when he was a sophomore. Fellow G Tony White (1,081 points) will be starting his senior year.

• The loss of junior forward Antwaine Wiggins means Charleston will have a smaller lineup, the Charleston Post and Courier has reported. In Wiggins’ place, guard Donavan Monroe will start, meaning the Cougars will start three guards as opposed to three big men.

• The Jan. 4 home game against North Carolina has already been dubbed “The toughest ticket in town,” but it isn’t the first—nor will it be the last—time College of Charleston has a home game against a big-conference opponent during Bobby Cremins’ stint at the school. South Carolina visited last season, and Clemson and Tennessee will also be making trips to Charleston in the next two seasons.

Last Year:   27-9 overall, 15-5, tied for second in Southern Conference South Division; lost to Richmond in second round of the CBI Tournament.

Head Coach:   Bobby Cremins (career 519-344); fourth year at College of Charleston (65-37).

Quote To Note:   “It’s a bummer. I’m really disappointed. I really feel bad for Antwaine. It’s a tough blow. He’s a great kid and he’s absolutely brokenhearted right now.”—Cougars coach Bobby Cremins, quoted in the Charleston Post and Courier, on the loss of returning starter Antwaine Wiggins to an ACL tear during the offseason.

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

Scouting The Newcomers:   The last time a Southern Conference team plucked a big name out of Charlotte Christian School, the basketball world started to pay attention to a relatively unheard of school named Davidson. Now, that’s not to say College of Charleston SF Willis Hall—who broke Stephen Curry’s scoring mark at the high school—will do what Curry did. But he won’t be a bad addition, either. Hall should see significant minutes early and be a prime contributor off the bench.

Key Early-season Games:   The Cougars’ non-conference schedule will again include a number of stouts tests, starting with in-state opponent Winthrop, a traditionally strong recruiter in South Carolina. College of Charleston will also play at Tennessee (Nov. 27), at Clemson (Dec. 19) and at the Diamond Head Classic in Hawaii, where opponents will range from SMU and UNLV to Northeastern, St. Mary’s and USC. The non-conference slate is topped off with a Jan. 4 home game against defending national champion North Carolina.

Program Direction:   Charleston brass might have done themselves a considerable favor when they signed coach Bobby Cremins to a two-year extension during the offseason. Cremins is under contract through the 2013-2014 season, meaning first-year players can expect to have him on the sidelines throughout their college career. It should also continue to impact immediate recruiting.

Probable Starting Lineup:   G Andrew Goudelock, G Tony White, G Donavan Monroe, F Jeremy Simmons, F Casaan Breeden.

Roster Report:  

• The first-year class at Charleston includes Florida State transfer Casaan Breeden, who will be eligible after the first semester ends. The 6-foot-8, 205-pound forward played in 66 games in two-plus seasons for the Seminoles, averaging 4.7 points per game during his final half season. He sat out last season due to NCAA transfer rules.

• Another first-year player, freshman Rashad Wright (Kent, Conn.) is expected to play considerable minutes right away for the Cougars. Wright, who averaged 10.8 points and 8.2 rebounds per game in prep school last season, fits into the mold of Bobby Cremins players. Wright is 6-foot-9 and about 200 pounds.

• Cremins is expected to have two scholarships with which to recruit this year, as one of the team’s three seniors is a walk-on.

• F Antwaine Wiggins, who will miss the season after tearing an anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee, should return for the 2010-2011 season with two years of eligibility remaining.