December 2, 2002
The College of Charleston spent Thanksgiving week getting all kinds of national publicity while winning the Great Alaska Shootout. Charleston Southern took a holiday trip to Florida and got a nice road victory over Stetson on Saturday.
The Citadel Bulldogs?
Well, they spent five days on the road, lost two games and got home late on Thanksgiving afternoon, too late for turkey and trimmings.
"We usually do something at our house, but we didn't have enough time this year," said Citadel basketball coach Pat Dennis. "We'd been together five days, and I think we'd seen enough of each other at that point."
The 1-2 Bulldogs reconvened for practice Sunday afternoon, facing a key five-game homestand that starts today against rival Charleston Southern. The five-game focus: Find a way to score more points.
"It's early in the season," Dennis said. "But in this five-game home stretch, we really need to be energized, and to play with a tremendous amount of energy and enthusiasm. And we've got to find a way to generate some offense."
The Bulldogs are averaging 61 points and shooting 37.8 percent from the floor. In last week's two losses at Navy and Maryland, The Citadel averaged just 50 points per game. Freshman point guard Kevin Hammack is the leading scorer, averaging 15 points while shooting 50 percent from the field and from 3-point range, and junior forward Max Mombollet is averaging 12.7 points and seven boards.
But Dennis has yet to find a running mate for Hammack in the backcourt. Guards Kenny Milford, Erick Wilson and Clyde Wormley - each of whom has started at least once - are shooting a combined 11 of 54, including 5 of 25 from 3-point range.
Dennis said he's likely to tweak his starting lineup again today, perhaps going with 6-8 Gregg Jones up front.
"We're trying to figure out who can score, what roles people can play, where they fit in," said Dennis, whose team lost three 1,000-point career scorers from last year in Cliff Washburn, Travis Cantrell and Alan Puckett. "Sometimes, it's tough for guys who have been role players when they are asked to do more. We've got to figure out what we can and can't do, and it's a learning experience in the preseason."
Charleston Southern coach Jim Platt, whose team improved to 2-1 with a 68-62 win at Stetson Saturday, agrees that it's way too early to make judgments.
"I really like our team," said Platt, whose Buccaneers defeated The Citadel by 70-66 last season at the North Charleston Coliseum. "I think over the course of a long season, we can be a pretty good team.
"But after only three games, we are really just at the starting point."
The Bucs have had a balanced attack in the early going - five players scored in double figures at Stetson - and holding the Hatters to 62 points was big for a team that had surrendered 79.5 points per game in the first two.
Senior guard Gene Granger had 17 points against Stetson, while sophomore Trent Drafts came off the bench for 14 points and seven rebounds.
Point guard Ed O'Neill had 10 points and four steals as CSU made 16 steals while forcing 20 Stetson turnovers.
The Bulldogs play host to CSU's Big South colleague, High Point, on Thursday and then plays Oglethorpe, Southwestern and South Carolina State at home this month.
Charleston Southern has an eight-day layoff before facing Voorhees Dec. 11, then faces three huge challenges - games at Michigan, at Tennessee and at Florida over a nine-day span.
BUCS VS. DOGS
What: Charleston Southern (2-1) at The Citadel (1-2)
When: Today, 7:15 p.m.
Where: McAlister Field House
Radio: WQNT 1450-AM
