Once Upon A Time In Las Vegas – Divisional Round
The Chicago State Cougars and Coastal Carolina Chanticleers will play Monday at the HTC Center. Tip-off from Conway, SC, is at 7:00 p.m. ET. Coastal Carolina is a 7.5-point favorite, and the game total is 145 points.
Chicago State, 4-16 SU and 11-8 ATS, lost to UT Rio Grande Valley in its last game. The Cougars are 1-4 in their past five. Coastal Carolina, 10-9 SU and 8-8 ATS, beat South Alabama on Saturday. The Chanticleers are 3-2 in their past five. This is the first meeting between these teams.
The Cougars are 1-9 in their past ten, with their lone win coming over the East-West University Phantoms. Chicago State, an independent program, has played Northwestern, Valparaiso, Marshall, Marquette, and Murray State as part of its diverse schedule.
In their latest matchup, the Cougars challenged the Vaqueros until the closing minutes, falling by only three points. Chicago State shot 29-for-57 (50.9%) from the field but was outrebounded 37-31 and lost the turnover battle. Still, it was an encouraging performance on the road by four-win CSU.
We covered @ChicagoStateMBB 90-70 victory over East-West University last night. @johnsonbryce11 scored 21 points and grabbed 8 rebounds for the Cougars. #ChicagoStateofMind pic.twitter.com/0hz9eiOSjX
— Chicago State of Mind Sports (@chicagoverzuz) January 10, 2023
The Cougars average 66.8 points (311th) on 41.1 percent shooting (326th), including 32.0 percent from three (287th). They convert 73.2 percent of their free throws (118th) and average 31.4 rebounds (22nd) with a +0.2 rebounding margin. CSU is ranked 240th in schedule-adjusted offensive efficiency, per KenPom.
Sophomore guard Wesley Cardet Jr. leads the Cougars in scoring, averaging 15.8 points with a 42.2 field goal percentage. Other players to watch when Chicago State takes the court are sophomore guard Jahsean Corbett (13.1 PPG and 9.1 RPG), senior guard Elijah Weaver (11.5 PPG and 4.2 RPG), and sophomore guard Bryce Johnson (8.9 PPG and 3.6 RPG).
Chicago State gives up 73.9 points (298th) on 45.5 percent shooting (301st), including 31.8 percent from behind the arc (106th). CSU is 318th in schedule-adjusted defensive efficiency and 337th in assist-per-turnover ratio (0.74).