Coastal Men Roll in 2014-15 Opener, 79-36
11/14/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Senior guard Josh Cameron came off the bench to lead a balanced scoring effort with 16 points and added a game-high four assists as the Chanticleers opened the contest with a 7-0 run and never trailed. Sophomore point guard Shivaughn Wiggins totaled 12 points, six rebounds and three assists in his Coastal debut, while senior Warren Gillis chipped in 10 points and three assists. Gillis' 10 points pushed his double-digit scoring streak to 22 straight games.
Junior center Uros Ljeskovic grabbed a career and game-high 12 rebounds, along with seven points, while junior college transfer Marcus Freeman scored all 10 of his points in the second half and also grabbed eight rebounds in just 13 minutes of action. A total of 10 Chanticleers got into the scoring column in the game, with eight recording at least six points.
Coastal got off to a high-flying start with junior Badou Diagne throwing down a pair of dunks in the first three minutes, including an alley-oop from Wiggins that made it 9-2. After Trinity Baptist hit a 3-pointer, the Chanticleers used a 12-1 run to build a 21-6 cushion just under eight minutes in. Cameron hit a 3-pointer and layup and junior Michel Enanga scored off an assist by Gillis to cap the spurt. Cameron then added a 3-pointer a minute later as Coastal made nine of its first 15 shots, including 3 of 4 from 3-point range.
CCU then closed the first half with a 10-0 spurt over the last 3:05 to push its lead to 24 at halftime. Wiggins and Enanga combined to make six free throws, Ljeskovic converted a layup on an assist from Colton Ray-St Cyr and Tristian Curtis got a putback basket with five seconds left to make it 38-14.
The Chants shot 12 for 26 (46 percent) in the opening 20 minutes and dominated the boards 31-8, including 11 on the offensive end. Defensively, Coastal limited Trinity Baptist to just 17 percent shooting (4 for 23) from the field.
The Chanticleers then poured it on over the game's final nine minutes, outscoring the Eagles 28-2 - including a 23-0 run - to turn a 17-point lead into the 43-point final difference. Cameron scored eight points during that stretch, Freeman had seven and sophomore Ron Trapps hit a pair of 3-pointers.
The Chanticleers finished the game at 50 percent (28 for 56) from the floor, including 7 of 18 from beyond the arc, while Trinity Baptist shot just 26 percent (13 for 50). CCU totaled a 53-20 rebounding advantage, outscored the Eagles 40-8 in the paint, scored 24 points off turnovers and had a 16-0 edge in second-chance points.
Coastal improved to 25-16 all-time in season openers and won its fifth straight home opener, with the last three coming in The HTC Center.
The Chanticleers will now head west for a matchup against traditional power UCLA at Pauley Pavilion on Sunday night. Tip-off is set for 10 p.m. EST.
