It's early in the season and Coastal Carolina's ultimate goals are still months away, but the Chanticleers delivered quite a statement Monday night against LSU at Baton Rouge, La.
Playing one of the toughest nonconference games on their schedule, in the home of an SEC foe with a far richer basketball history than their own, the Chants battled through a frenetic final few minutes of regulation and an overtime session to secure the biggest win of their season to this point.
Coastal Carolina 78, Louisiana State 69.
Coastal Carolina University men's basketball head coach Cliff Ellis makes a point during a timeout as the Chants hosts Charleston Southern in their Big South opener. Photo by Tom Murray tmurray@thesunnews.com
"It's a signature win," CCU coach Cliff Ellis said by phone, after addressing the team in the locker room. "There haven't been many like this, so just proud to be a part of it, and I hope our fans will embrace it when we play East Carolina [Saturday at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center]."
CCU (8-2) had a four-point lead in the final minute of regulation, but LSU's Storm Warren scored with eight seconds left to tie the game at 64-64, and sophomore guard Anthony Raffa missed a three-pointer at the buzzer as the game went to overtime.
The Chants had plenty left, though.
Junior guard Desmond Holloway and senior forward Mike Holmes scored the first two baskets of overtime, and after that lead was trimmed to two points, senior forward Chad Gray knocked down 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions to stretch the lead and send the Chants on the way to their first win over an SEC opponent since defeating South Carolina during the 1993-94 season.
"We had to fight for it, but very pleased that we got it," Ellis said. "We just won it with grit and determination - that was the key."
Gray led the way with 22 points, seven rebounds and four three-pointers. Holloway added 18 points and seven rebounds, and Holmes - making his CCU debut after transferring from South Carolina - had 14 points and 10 rebounds in 24 minutes off the bench.
The stat that impressed Ellis most, though, was his team's 41-30 rebounding advantage.
The Chants got off to a slow start, falling behind 9-0 early and later trailed by as many as 10 points late in the half before cutting their deficit to 35-30 at halftime.
They would take their first lead in the second half as Holmes made it 43-41 with 13:27 remaining. That came during a 14-0 run that turned a five-point deficit into a 50-41 lead midway through the half.
The victory stretches Coastal Carolina's winning streak to six games, while dropping LSU to 6-3 for the season. It was CCU's second ever win against an SEC foe.
"Without question, that was huge," Ellis said.
COASTAL CAROLINA (8-2): McLaurin 1-2 0-0 2, Gray 7-12 4-6 22, Nieman 1-5 6-6 8, Holloway 8-17 2-2 18, Greenwood 1-3 1-4 3, Crawford 1-2 0-0 2, Raffa 2-6 4-4 9, Holmes 6-13 2-4 14. Totals 27-60 19-26 78.
LSU (6-3): White 2-3 1-4 5, Warren 4-6 0-0 8, Stringer 6-15 0-0 16, Turner 5-16 4-4 15, Dotson 2-8 4-6 9, Green 4-6 1-3 9, Bass 2-2 0-0 4, Ludwig 0-0 0-0 0, Courtney 0-0 0-0 0, Harris 0-2 0-0 0, Derenbecker 1-6 0-0 3. Totals 26-64 10-17 69.
Halftime-LSU 35-30. End Of Regulation_Tied 64. 3-Point Goals-Coastal Carolina 5-14 (Gray 4-5, Raffa 1-4, Nieman 0-1, Greenwood 0-1, Holloway 0-3), LSU 7-22 (Stringer 4-8, Derenbecker 1-2, Dotson 1-3, Turner 1-9). Fouled Out-None. Rebounds-Coastal Carolina 45 (Holmes 10), LSU 35 (Turner 6). Assists-Coastal Carolina 7 (Nieman 4), LSU 13 (Stringer 5). Total Fouls-Coastal Carolina 18, LSU 23. A-6,425.
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