Big South Basketball: Ranking of 25 best players from last decade (2013-23)

17. Christian Keeling

Keeling is a 6’3 wing from Augusta, Georgia. His work at Charleston Southern was so impressive that he’d transfer to North Carolina and play his final collegiate season at Chapel Hill. We’re not here to talk about that year in the ACC (which wasn’t very good), but will instead show what an important offensive weapon he was for the Buccaneers during his time in the Big South.

A menace as a freshman, Keeling was already averaging 17.3 points and 7.1 rebounds per game in his debut. Charleston Southern was never the winningest program in the league, but Keeling was certainly one of the best weapons. He was at or around 18 points per game in each of his three seasons with the program. He had 29 points as a freshman in the Big South Tournament and would have a triple-double against Coppin State during his junior season, a season that would end in the CIT after a nice run in the conference tournament again.

Keeling left for the Tar Heels after that junior year, but he left quite an impression with these Buccaneers. He was First Team All-Big South in that final season but was one of the league’s most effective scorers throughout his career. He shot the ball well in each of those four seasons and actually led a few defensive metrics in that junior season, doing it all while at Charleston Southern. It’s a shame how both he and the Tar Heels were disappointing during his senior season because he had quite the legacy in the Big South.