Citadel-College of Charleston Preview: Cougars Look to Collar Bulldogs

The Citadel Bulldogs (16-10, 11-4) at College of Charleston Cougars (18-6, 10-4)

Saturday, Feb. 14, 2009 – 4:00 PM EST

The Citadel Bulldogs travel to Charleston on Saturday to face the Cougars in what amounts to an enormous game for both teams.

The Cougars trail the Bulldogs by a half game for second place in the North Division of the Southern Conference. Both teams are chasing first place Davidson and this is a must-win if either school has visions of catching the Wildcats.

The Bulldogs have shown that their bite matches their bark as they enter this contest having won eight straight and nine of their last 10. Included in the streak is a 72-63 victory over Charleston back in January.

Several factors stand out from their first game.

The Citadel, despite being dominated on the glass, 44-32, held the Cougars to only 38.1 percent shooting while they converted field goals at a rate of 46.4.

Contributing to their low percentage was the fact that Charleston shot an abysmal 2-for-18 on three-point shots. By contrast, the Bulldogs sizzled from beyond the arc by burying eight of their 15 attempts.

The Citadel also shared the ball exceptionally well as they assisted on 17-of-26 made field goals while Charleston had a mere three assists for the entire game.

For the Cougars to triumph at home, they must shoot a higher percentage while at the same time, lock down on defense. They’ll also need to control the boards like they did the first time around and do a better job of working as a team to get each other easy baskets.

Current line: College of Charleston -8.0

The Citadel is an outstanding 13-6-1 against the spread with a mark of 11-3 as an underdog including six straight covers.

Charleston is 8-9 against the spread with a record of 5-7 as the favorite but only one for their last eight.

As poorly as Charleston played in the first meeting, they only lost by nine. Given that this game is at home and they’ll be motivated by conference standing and revenge, the Cougars should be confident heading into the contest.

Steve’s pick: College of Charleston -8.0