Box Score CONWAY, SC—The South Carolina State men's basketball team suffered another setback, dropping a tough 66-52 defeat to Coastal Carolina Tuesday (Dec. 2) at the HTC Center.
South Carolina State falls to 1-5, while Coastal Carolina improves to 5-2.Freshman guard
Edward Stephens led the Bulldogs with 15 points and five rebounds, while
Gerdarius Troutman added 10 in the loss.
"It was a tough night and we didn't rebound well or take care of the basketball down the stretch," said Bulldog head coach
Murray Garvin. "We just have to keep playing hard and get better so we can be prepared for upcoming MEAC play."
CCU jumped out to an 11-7 lead off a tip-in by junior forward Tristian Curtis at the 13:18 mark. SC State cut the lead to three, 16-13, when Troutman nailed his second three-pointer of the night with 9:35 remaining in the first-half.
The Chanticleers sparked a 14-5 run led by a three-pointer by Wiggins to build their largest lead of the half 12, 30-18, with 3:27 remaining in the first-half. Sophomore guard
Greg Mortimer tossed in a pair of free-throws followed by a tip-in by freshman forward
Tashombe Riley to cut the lead to seven, 33-26, to close out the first-half.
In the second-half senior guard Josh Cameron led the charge with a 11-0 run, hitting three straight three-pointers followed by a layup to put CCU ahead ten,58-48, with 7:06 remaining in regulation. The Chanticleers out-rebounded the Bulldogs 42-29, while scoring 24 unanswered points in the paint to claim the 66-52 victory.
Garvin stated, "Boxing out and rebounding was the story of the game. We didn't do a good job of crashing the boards and fight for more rebounds."
Coastal Carolina was led by junior forward Badou Diagne recording the games only double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Cameron also finished with 14 in the win.
South Carolina State will return to action on Saturday (Dec.6) when they host the visiting Rattlers of Florida A&M in a pivotal Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference showdown. Tipoff is 6 p.m., immediately following the women's contest.
