NCAA Basketball: Loaded field for the 2018 AdvoCare Invitational
There are several non-conference NCAA basketball tournaments that feature outstanding fields. The 2018 AdvoCare Invitational is one of those with an elite group of teams.
Now that summer is here it is time for the fields of next fall’s early-season tournaments to trickle out. One of the more intriguing ones is the 2018 AdvoCare Invitational, which takes place in Buena Vista, Florida from Nov. 22-25. The eight teams participating in this year’s AdvoCare Invitational are: Canisius (Metro Atlantic Athletic), College of Charleston (Colonial), Florida State (ACC), LSU (SEC), Memphis (American), Oklahoma State (Big 12), Alabama-Birmingham (Conference USA), and Villanova (Big East).
This is a loaded field for college hoop fans to feast on over the Thanksgiving holiday. Here is a look at the eight participating teams.
Canisius Golden Griffins
Head coach Reggie Witherspoon’s squad may have had a season that went a bit underappreciated outside of the MAAC, given how their season ended. The Golden Griffins ended their season with a school record 21 wins and their share of the regular-season MAAC title was their first in over 20 years. However, they were upset by No. 7 Quinnipiac in the quarterfinals of the MAAC tournament. They settled for an invitation to the CBI, where they fell to Jacksonville State in the first round.
Witherspoon returns five of his top six scorers and only two of whom, Jonathan Sanks and Jibreel Faulkner, will be seniors. The team should be led by its three returning guards in rising sophomore Takal Mason and rising juniors Isaiah Reese and Malik Johnson. Newcomers who might have an impact for Canisius include a pair of 6-foot-6 small forwards in JUCO transfer Kejuan Johnson and freshman Mervin James.
College of Charleston Cougars
Earl Grant’s Charleston Cougars swept through the Colonial Athletic Association last season, winning 26 games, a share of the regular-season title, a conference tournament title, and nearly pulled an upset of No. 4-seeded Auburn in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, falling 62-58.
How do the Cougars follow that up? The first order of business would be to try and replace the production of do-everything guard Joe Chealey, who graduated. Thankfully for the Cougars, they do return both of their other double-digit scorers from last season. Junior Grant Riller and senior Jarrell Brantley, who combined to average 35.9 points per game last season, should be the backbone of the offense. Charleston will need more production out of seniors Nick Harris, who only scored in double figures twice in February and March combined, and Marquise Pointer, who ,despite averaging 25 minutes per game, only averaged 5.7 points. Both guys will need to be more assertive on the offensive end if the Cougars hope to reach the same heights in 2018-19.
It will be interesting to see how the Cougars’ reserve backcourt situation shakes out with redshirt-freshman Zep Jasper and incoming recruits Jaylen Richard and Quan McCluney all looking for playing time.