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Hatters Fail To Hold Off Hard-Charging Bucs

Men's Basketball Stetson University

Hatters Fail To Hold Off Hard-Charging Bucs

DeLand, Fla. – For the third time this season, and the second time in a week, the Stetson Hatters ran out to a big early lead on Wednesday against Charleston Southern, only to see the visiting Buccaneers rally to defeat Stetson 88-81.

Stetson (4-6) ran out to a 13-point lead in the first half, but the Buccaneers closed the gap to 40-37 at the break. After a frenetic few minutes to start the second half, a stretch that saw the teams score 21 points each, Stetson still had control of the game with a 68-60 lead.

But that was where the smallest player of the floor took command. CSU's freshman point guard, Saah Nimley, who is listed at 5-foot, 8-inches tall but is likely closer to 5-2, pushed the Bucs to the lead with his passing (six assists down the stretch) and scoring (8 points).

“We had no answer for him,” Hatters head coach Casey Alexander said. “We had three guys who tried to guard him and he still hurt us. He hurt us by scoring 23 points and he hurt us with 12 assists.”

The Hatters lost for the third time in a row despite playing exceptionally well early in the game. Led by sophomore guard Chris Perez, who scored a personal career high, as well as team season-high, 23 points, Stetson was on the verge of blowing the game open in the first half.

But, like has happened before, the knockout punch never came.

“We have three losses like this, one against them at their place, last Saturday against Upstate and then again tonight,” Alexander said. “It has been the same formula. We have played really well for the first 15 or 16 minutes and then, for whatever reason, the other team gets back in it and makes it even and then beats us down the stretch. We just have to figure out how to turn that around.”

Perez was quick to point out the deciding factor in having games turn against the Hatters.

“We get off to a good start in the first half and then we come out in the second half and turn the ball over,” Perez said. “It is the same story in back-to-back games. It is so frustrating because we have to take care of the ball. We are killing ourselves out there.”

Stetson turned the ball over 20 times on Wednesday, with those mistakes leading to15 Charleston Southern points. The Buccaneers also dominated the Hatters in the paint, out-scoring Stetson 48-32 in the lane.

The Hatters got off to a fast start to open the game, building a lead to as many as 13 points by hitting seven three-pointers. Stetson was forced to rely on its outside shooting early after both Pegg and McInerney picked up a pair of early fouls.

Charleston Southern, much as they did in the first meeting between the teams this year, came storming back late in the half by attacking the rim and scoring easy baskets while also getting to the free throw line. The Buccaneers outscored Stetson 14-4 over the final four minutes of the half without taking a shot from beyond layup range while hitting 4-of-5 from the free throw line.

In addition to the 23 points scored by Perez, the Hatters got 14 points from Joel Naburgs and 10 off the bench from Willie Green. Junior guard Amara Thompson made his Stetson debut in the game and finished with five points.

Nimley's 23 points led Charleston Southern, which used just seven players for significant playing time in the game. Cedrick Bowen added 17 points while Kelvin Martin had 16. Two other Bucs – Sheldon Strickland and Arlon Harper – chipped in with 14 and 11 points, respectively.

The Hatters will next be in action on Thursday, December 29, at the UCF Holiday Classic. Stetson will take on the host Knight at 7 p.m. and will face either Rhode Island or James Madison the next night. Stetson fans can purchase tickets for the games in advance from the UCF Ticket Office for just $8.

“I hope we will come back ready to play against UCF,” Alexander said. “It is a local game and a lot of our guys know a lot of their players. I think it will be a fun night and I expect us to be ready to play, but it will be a challenge. We will have to play really well to have a chance to win the game.”
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Players Mentioned

Joel Naburgs

#12 Joel Naburgs

G
6' 3"
Freshman
Chris Perez

#3 Chris Perez

G
6' 4"
Redshirt Sophomore
Willie Green

#3 Willie Green

F
6' 7"
Sophomore
Amara Thompson

#2 Amara Thompson

G
6' 4"
Junior

Players Mentioned

Joel Naburgs

#12 Joel Naburgs

6' 3"
Freshman
G
Chris Perez

#3 Chris Perez

6' 4"
Redshirt Sophomore
G
Willie Green

#3 Willie Green

6' 7"
Sophomore
F
Amara Thompson

#2 Amara Thompson

6' 4"
Junior
G