NCAA Basketball: 2018 Gildan Charleston Classic preview and predictions
Breaking down the teams, part 1
Alabama Crimson Tide (2-0)
The Crimson Tide are one of four teams still undefeated entering this year’s classic at 2-0 on the young season. They defeated the Appalachian State Mountaineers in their most recent game back on Sunday night, 81-73.
Head coach Avery Johnson has some work to do in replacing playmaking point guard Collin Sexton but their opening round game against the Northeastern Huskies should be a good test for them on Thursday.
Sharpshooter John Petty is averaging 15.0 points on 53.8 percent shooting from behind the arc. Senior forward Donta Hall has put up 16.0 points and 8.5 rebounds per contest. Freshman guard Kira Lewis Jr. is one player to keep an eye on for this squad. He’s produced 13.5 points, 4.0 assists and 3.0 rebounds per game so far.
Appalachian State Mountaineers (1-1)
The Mountaineers have split their first two games of the 2018-19 season. They lost to Alabama by eight points for their first loss of the year on Sunday night.
Guards Justin Forrest and Ronshad Shabazz look to lead the way in the backcourt for this club. They’ve combined to average 35.0 points through the first two games of the season. They open the tournament with a game against No. 23 Purdue on Thursday.
Ball State Cardinals (1-1)
Ball State isn’t a well-known college basketball team but the Gildan Classic should put teams on notice. They lost by just nine points to the Purdue Boilermakers this past Saturday, 84-75. The Cardinals trailed by 42-41 at halftime and it took some extra efforts from the Boilermakers to get the win.
Senior guard Tayler Persons finished with 19 points and eight rebounds. Former Missouri Tigers guard K.J. Walton has been a key contributor as well. Ball State should be a solid challenge for the Hokies in their opening round game on Thursday.
Davidson Wildcats (2-0)
The Davidson Wildcats are another of the four undefeated teams entering this year’s Gildan Classic. They’ll be up against one of the tougher teams in a must-see opening round game against the Shockers on Thursday night.
The Wildcats have survived a scare already against the Dartmouth Big Green, coming out with a 79-76 victory last Friday night. After trailing 40-33 at halftime, Davidson got things together despite allowing 15 made 3-pointers on defense. They’ll have their hands full in Charleston with Wichita State.