BRUNSWICK, Ga. - Coming into the week on a two game skid, the College of Coastal Georgia men's basketball team needs to rebound in a big way as they take on one of the hottest teams in the Sun Conference as they host the Ave Maria Gyrenes on Wednesday night before travelling to Sarasota, Fla. to take on the New College of Florida Mighty Banyan on Saturday.
The Mariners (7-12, 4-6 SUN) looked poised to be a higher seed in the Sun Conference tournament just two weeks ago until the recent downslide, winning just one of their last six matchups. CCGA has been without their leader on the court in Kaden McArthur who is still recovering from injury and looks to make a return this week in the final push to the tournament. With 18 points per game on the bench, the likes of Salle Wilson, Preston Crisp and Jeremiah Camara have had to step up in the absence, and all three have played well over the last two weeks.
While the Mariners offense still leaves more to be desired, the defense for CCGA has stepped up, posting the fourth best defense in the conference allowing just 76.1 points per contest. Wilson does also rank inside the top 10 in the conference in points per game along with McArthur at 15.8 per night.
The No. 23 ranked Gyrenes (18-5, 9-2 SUN) come in on a three game winning streak, most recently defeating the number 13 team in the country, Florida Memorial, by a final of 83-82 in overtime on their home court. Ave Maria is 8-2 in their last 10 games, with losses coming to Southeastern and Florida Memorial which dates back all the way to January 4. Five players scored 11 or more points in the contest led by Nick Filchner with 19 points. Jack Watkins, who has scored double figures in his last seven matchups, leads the team in scoring with 14.5 points per game. AMU ranks first in the conference in scoring with 96 points per game, but allows opponents to score almost 86 points per game, ranking sixth in the SUN.
It's a four game losing streak for the Mighty Banyan (11-11, 4-6 SUN) as they prepare to travel to Miami Gardens for a matchup with Florida Memorial on Wednesday before hosting CCGA on Saturday. NCF has not won a game since their January 18, 124-117, win over Warner. The Mighty Banyan have the leading scorer in the conference and quite possibly the frontrunner for Conference Player of the Year in Charlie Yonder who averages an incredible 24.2 points per game. Last time against CCGA, Yonder put up 30 points and 10 rebounds in their first Sun Conference win of the season.
Tip off is set for 7:30 on Wednesday followed by a 7:00 p.m. start on Saturday.
