The SoCon made the encouraging move this year away from the divisional-based seeding system for their conference tournament, with the exception of granting the top two seeds to the two division winners. The thing that hasn’t changed, however, are the team names at the top of the standings. It’s not the Steph Curry Davidson, but it is the Jake Cohen Davidson, 
and they are, once again, far and away, the best team in the SoCon – winning it by 3 games at 17-1. College of Charleston, who has created the “second banana” niche here much like a SoCon’s version of St. Mary’s in the WCC, finished as the 2nd-best team in the league, but will get the #3-seed because they are in the same division as Davidson. The Northern Division winner, Elon, is a relatively deserving #2-seed, though, as the Phoenix had a very solid year all-around. We also saw some real surprises in Samford and Chattanooga, while the big disappoinment came from UNC-Greensboro, who was thought to challenge, if not Davidson or CofC, at least Elon for the North title. GA-Southern was also a bit disappointing, though they were the only team to beat Davidson (and, then did so by 13). The hottest team in the non-Davidson portion of this league is probably Appalachian St., who made up for a slow start by earning the 4th-seed and the bye via a double-OT win over Samford last week. We should also give a shout-out to The Citadel, who won 5 conference games and were competitive all year as a program that is usually a SoCon doormat.
CHAMPIONSHIP (March 11th – 18 points)
#1 Davidson vs #3 College of Charleston
The two most accomplished programs in the SoCon get to battle yet again for conference supremacy. The Wildcats of Davidson are the clear favorites, but you can never rule out a Charleston team that has put together a 24-win season and is always tough in these situations. As much as I hate to admit it because I think it’s wrong, but Davidson has no legit shot at an at-large, so their great season comes down to these 40 minutes.
PapaCim (App State), Gersh and Stumpf (Elon) are the only three that can’t get points here. GrossSr, Mac, and Waters have CofC. The other 18 all have Davidson. If Davidson wins, Bry will take the 2013 SoCon title. If CofC wins, GrossSr will get that crown.
Davidson 74 – College of Charleston 55
This season was kind of a forgone conclusion before it started. This Davidson team is a good bit better than the rest of the SoCon, but we’ve all seen significantly better teams not win their conference tournaments (see: Tennessee, Middle). And, this could have been the year, as SoCon POY Jake Cohen had a rough tournament. The ‘Cats nearly lost in the semis to App State. But, even without Cohen at his best, his supporting cast – namely, the underrated Da’Mon Brooks – stepped up in a big way in Monday’s championship, and the ‘Cats ride into the Dance as a really scary first-round opponent for someone.
18 people correctly got this champion. GrossSr, Mac, and Waters missed the upset pick here. Bry clinches his first ever CTC SoCon title.
SEMIFINALS (March 10th – 12 points each)
#1 Davidson vs #4 Appalachian St.
Davidson has been head-and-shoulders the best team in the SoCon from the start of the season. But, App State has been playing really well as of late, and might not be the rollover that Davidson hopes to prepare for a tough final against either Elon of CofC. App State took care of 12th-seeded Furman in the quarters, while Davidson plastered #9 GA-Southern.
Gersh, GrossSr, PapaCim, and Waters all have App State in a nice upset pick here. PapaCim has them winning it all, so this is big for him. Everyone else has Davidson, including 18 people, who pegged them to win this tournament.
Davidson 65 – Appalachian St. 62
Multiple times, including well into the second half, it looked like App State was in total control of this game. They had several double-digit leads and didn’t trail at all for the first 33 minutes of this semifinal, and Nathan Healy got a good look to tie at the buzzer, but it didn’t go. In the end, it was just too much Jake Cohen and Da’Mon Brooks, as Davidson closed out a nice comeback to advance to Monday’s championship. App State was really a play away from going to the title game where I think they’d have had a decent chance to beat either of their other semifinalists.
PapaCim loses the most with the Davidson comeback, as he loses his SoCon champ. Gersh, GrossSr, and Waters also lose finalists. Everyone else got this right, including the 18 Davidson title supporters.
#2 Elon vs #3 College of Charleston
The top 4 seeds all came through in the quarters, setting the stage for a really good SoCon semifinal double-header. Both of these teams knocked off talented teams in the last round, with Elon beating the underachieving 10-seed, Greensboro, while CofC knocked off the up-and-coming 6-seed WCU. It has been a great season for Elon and a typically solid season for CofC, but their season might be defined by this game.
A CTC SoCon title might be defined here, as well, as all 24 people have a horse in this race, with the game split just enough to make it important. Most people had CofC in the mild upset here, but seven (Gersh, GrossJr, J, Lohse, PapaCim, Primm, and Waters) have Elon here. Also, of the six people that didn’t pick Davidson to win the tournament, five of them took one of these two teams. Gersh and Stumpf have Elon; GrossSr, Mac, and Waters have CofC.
College of Charleston 68 – Elon 60
The Cougars scored the first 11 points of the game and the first 8 points of the second half to really take control of this game at those key times. The got 19 from their senior center from London, Andrew Lawrence, and an unlikely double-double from Willis Hall. The Cougars will now take on their perennial nemisis, Davidson.
Gersh and Stumpf both lost champions here. GrossSr, Mac, and Waters kept theirs alive. 18 people got this mild upset right.
QUARTERFINALS (March 9th – 6 points each)
#1 Davidson vs #9 GA-Southern
This Davidson team is really, really good. I would not want to see them in the big tournament in two weeks, but they won’t get there unless they win their next three here in Asheville. Game One comes against a GA-Southern team that handled Wofford in the opening round on Friday.
Everyone has Davidson here, with a large majority picking the ‘Cats to win this tournament.
Davidson 86 – Georgia-Southern 59
Nick Cochran hit 5 threes and dished out 7 assists, as the top-seeded Wildcats cruised to an easy win here in the quarters. GA-Southern – the one team to beat Davidson in the SoCon regular season put up zero resistance.
Everyone got this one right, though the 6 people that don’t have Davidson winning this tournament (Gersh, GrossSr, Mac, PapaCim, Stumpf, and Waters) probably aren’t thrilled by the ease with with the ‘Cats dominated.
#4 Appalachian St. vs #12 Furman
The Paladins of Furman pulled off a big SoCon upset on Friday, knocking out a solid Samford team, and now they get an Appalachian St. team that has been playing its best basketball of the year recently.
Seven people (Alex, Caleb, Dave, Doogan, Lazarow, Lohse, and Lynch) have already lost this game with Samford, but the other 17 have App State here. PapaCim has the most at stake with App State, as he has them winning this tournament. Gersh, GrossSr, and Waters all have them in the finals, so they would like a survival here.
Appalachian St. 74 – Furman 60
After upsetting Samford in the opening round to end its 10-game losing streak, Furman came out a little flat in the quarterfinals against #4 App State, and it was enough for the Mountaineers to build a big first half lead and hold on to advance to the semis to take on Davidson.
17 people got this one right, but PapaCim is the happiest of all, as he has App State winning this tournament. Gersh, GrossSr, and Waters keep alive a finalist.
#2 Elon vs #10 UNC-Greensboro
Greensboro looked good on Friday in an upset win over Chattanooga, but now they take on an Elon team that has had a heck of a season. Led by the big Lucas Troutman, the Elon Phoenix already have a 20-win season in the books and now they are looking for more. They are three wins from securing a trip to the Big Dance.
Doogan, GrossSr, RDoc, and Teddy all have Greensboro here in what would be a fantastic upset pick. Everyone else has Elon, except Mac, who has Chattanooga and has thus already lost this game. Gersh and Stumpf both have Elon winning this tournament, so they need a W here.
Elon 68 – UNC-Greensboro 61
2nd-seeded Elon turned a real back-and-forth first half into a more comfortable double-digit lead by opening the second half on an 8-0 run. Greensboro put up a nice struggle here, but a good Phoenix team was just too much down the stretch and will advance to the semis. Greensboro’s disappointing season comes to a close here in Asheville.
Doogan, GrossSr, RDoc, and Teddy missed on a solid upset pick here. Mac also lost the game, as he had Chattanooga. Everyone else got it right. Gersh and Stumpf get an important win, as they are the only two with Elon winning the SoCon tournament.
#3 College of Charleston vs #6 Western Carolina
After a solid 15-point win over The Citadel, WCU gets to take a crack at the College of Charleston in a pretty interesting quarterfinal. The College of Charleston had a typical CofC season – winning some nice non-conf games, suffering a few head-scratching losses in conference, but, in the end, putting together a really solid season. Their goal is not to top it off with a trip to the Dance.
J, Lohse, PapaCim, and Primm all have WCU in the upset here. A slew of people have CofC in the finals, with GrossSr, Mac, and Waters all picking them to win this tournament.
College of Charleston 78 – Western Carolina 70
In a pretty dramatic game of big runs by both teams, the Charleston Cougars ended up on top, ending a season of missed opportunities for a good WCU team that could be REALLY good next year. This year, though, Charleston is a kind of forgotten team here and they are two games from winning this tournament.
A Charleston title would be good new for GrossSr, Mac, and Waters, as they all have that. J, Lohse, PapaCim, and Primm missed on this upset here in the quarters.
OPENING ROUND (March 8th – 3 points each)
#8 Wofford vs #9 Georgia-Southern
Wofford should return to SoCon prominence very shortly, but this year, they were incredibly young and inexperienced. They will take on a disappointing GA-Southern team in a very intriguing – if inconsequential – 8/9 game, with the winner to get Davidson in the quarters. Wofford’s sophomore Karl Cochran has SoCon POY potential and is fun to watch.
Seven people (Bry, Caleb, Cheryl, Lazarow, LohseJr, Lynch, Primm, Rikey, and Waters) went with GA-Southern in the upset here, and no one had either of these teams beating Davidson on Saturday.
Georgia-Southern 60 – Wofford 44
Wofford’s season comes to a close thanks, in part, to a 3-20 performance from long range and a 38-26 disadvantage on the glass. The GA-Southern Eagles can now start preparing for conference behemoth Davidson in the quarterfinals on Saturday.
Nine people hit this minor upset for a whopping 6 points.
#5 Samford vs #12 Furman
Picked dead-last in the preseason rankings and putting together a dreadful non-conference portion of the season, Samford found something in conference play, finishing 9-9 and, if not for a double-OT loss last week at App State, would have earned a bye in the tournament. Furman has mid-conference talent, but has been just riddled with injuries and enters the tournament on a 10-game losing streak. They do still have senior forward, Colin Reddick, though, so they should be considered dangerous. The winner of this one will face off with a red-hot Appalachian St. team in the quarters on Saturday.
Five people (Bry, Gersh, GrossJr, GrossSr, and RDoc) took a big shot here at the Furman upset. Another five (Alex, Caleb, Dave, Doogan, and Lohse) have Samford beating App State next round to reach the semis.
Furman 55 – Samford 51
MADNESS! Taking a page from the Loyola Marymount playbook, the Furman Paladins enter the conference tournament with a double-digit losing streak only to shock their opening round opponent, Samford, whose season comes to a close in devastating fashion, as they lost the final two regular season games in OT and double-OT (either one of which would have given them the bye in the conference tournament) and then they lose to a Furman team that had lost 10 straight to end their season. Samford’s best player, Raijon Kelly goes 1-13 from the field for 3 points on the day. Fortunately, he’s only a sophomore, so there are better days ahead for this Bulldog program, but the way this season ended is going to sting. Furman will move on to face App State in the quarters on Saturday.
Bry, Gersh, GrossJr, GrossSr, and RDoc all hit on this huge upset pick. Alex, Caleb, Dave, Doogan, and Lohse lost two games here with the single Samford loss. On the heels of this win, Gersh and Bry take over the top two spots in the overall standings.
#7 Chattanooga vs #10 UNC-Greensboro
The Mocs of Chattanooga have been playing their best basketball down the stretch, finishing with four wins in their final seven games. But, they have the tall feat today of slowing down the conference’s leading scorer, Trevis Simpson. Simpson’s heroics this year were not enough to avoid a very disappointing season for a Greensboro team that had conference title aspirations. But, there is a path here for Greensboro, if they can take care of a mediocre Mocs team here, then they get a shot at Elon in the quarters on Saturday. There is a lot of talent with very few results here, so any result is possible.
Most people actually like Greensboro here in the upset, as only Caleb, Cheryl, LohseJr, Mac, and Rikey picked the Mocs. Mac has the most at stake with Chattanooga, as he has them beating Elon in the quarters. Of the upset pickers here, Doogan, GrossSr, RDoc, and Teddy have the most at stake, as those four have Greensboro reaching the semis.
UNC-Greensboro 87 – Chattanooga 81
Greensboro’s 6’1″ Derrell Armstrong went for 25 points and 8 boards, and the Spartans pulled off a mild upset in a day of upsets here in the SoCon. The talented Greensboro team now gets a shot at 2nd-seeded Elon in the quarters on Saturday. Chattanooga will have a long offseason to figure stuff out.
19 people hit on this upset pick, and Doogan, GrossSr, RDoc, and Teddy keep alive their semifinalist here. Mac lost a semifinalist here.
#6 Western Carolina vs #11 The Citadel
Like Greensboro, WCU probably feels like they underperformed in the SoCon this year. They have the pieces to be an upper-division team, but finished a disappointing 9-9 in conference, missing out on a first-round bye. Their first round opponent will be a feisty Citadel team who won 5 conference games, which is about 4 or 5 more than was expected, including a sweep of Furman and road wins at App State and GA-Southern. This is no walk in the park for WCU, though they may be looking ahead to a quarterfinal date with College of Charleston on Saturday.
Bry, Gersh, and Waters are the only three to take a shot on The Citadel here. J, Lohse, PapaCim, and Primm have the most at stake with WCU here, as they have them beating CofC before losing in the semis.
Western Carolina 76 – The Citadel 61
The Citadel kept it close for about 10 minutes, but the Catamounts went on a big run to end the first half and never looked back. Stud junior guard, Trey Sumler, poured in 27 for WCU, as they move on to face College of Charleston on Saturday. The Citadel ends a somewhat decent year for a program that doesn’t usually produce all that much as far as results on the hardwood.
Bry, Gersh, and Waters miss the upset pick here; the other 21 all got it right. J, Lohse, PapaCim, and Primm keep alive their lively semifinalist.
CTC UPDATE
Championship Picks
- #1 Davidson (18)
- #2 Elon (2)
- #3 College of Charleston (3)
- #4 Appalachian St. (1)
Biggest Upsets
- R1 – #12 Furman (Bry, Gersh, GrossJr, GrossSr, & RDoc)
- QF – #10 UNC-Greensboro (Doogan, GrossSr, RDoc & Teddy)
- SF – #4 Appalachian St. (Gersh, GrossSr, PapaCim & Waters)
- Champ – #4 Appalachian St. (PapaCim)
Previous CTC Champions
- 2008 – Ina
- 2009 – Lynch
- 2010 – Stri
- 2011 – GrossJr
- 2012 – Lil Lohse
FINAL 2013 SCORES
- Bry (’13) – 113
- RDoc – 104
- GrossJr (’11) – 93
- Alexi – 86
- Lynch (’09) – 86
- Scoot – 86
- Alex – 80
- Cheryl – 80
- Dave – 80
- LohseJr – 80
- Rikey – 80
- Teddy – 80
- Caleb – 74
- Doogan – 74
- GrossSr – 74
- Lazarow – 74
- Primm – 69
- J – 63
- Gersh – 60
- Waters – 59
- Lohse – 57
- Stumpf – 51
- Mac – 50
- PapaCim – 33
