Winthrop, Mark Prosser notch another ‘first.’ But that wasn’t what surprised Rock Hill
Antwon Ferrell drove baseline, got slapped across the forearms and still powered through a reverse layup. Bucket. And-one. Free throw good. 26-26.
Winthrop panic: engage.
Yes, the Eagles ended up defeating Carver College, 83-52, in its first-ever game in the state of the art Rock Hill sports and event center. The game was a part of the inaugural No Room For Racism Classic that ends on Sunday with a South Carolina-Florida State matchup that’ll be aired on ESPN2.
And sure, Winthrop didn’t have a few regulars in its lineup: Stalwart perimeter defender Chase Claxton was in a boot on his left foot. Starting redshirt junior forward Cory Hightower didn’t dress out either.
And fair, the Eagles saw a breakout performance from Josh Corbin, a starter to begin the year who has averaged just four minutes in the last three games before Saturday and didn’t play in Winthrop’s recent win over Furman. The redshirt sophomore scored 19 points in 28 minutes.
But the story on Saturday night was that Winthrop — a team expected to make the 2022 NCAA tournament — made what should’ve been a never-in-doubt game a bit stressful.
Did head coach Mark Prosser and Corbin ever hit the panic button? No, they said postgame.
“I don’t think you can ever underestimate how hard teams are going to play,” head coach Mark Prosser told reporters postgame. “I give (Carver) a lot of credit, they played two games in the last three nights leading up into tonight. They always do. We knew that. When we scheduled the game and watched the film, we knew they were going to play very hard. They’re well-coached. Their kids play with a lot of confidence.
“So when teams do that, you can’t be surprised when teams go right for them.”
What is Carver College?
Carver College is a school that plays an independent schedule that technically resides in the National Christian College Athletic Association. It’s a private Bible college located in Atlanta and was established in 1943 as “Carver Bible Institute” before being renamed in 2009.
Carver, a historically black college, has a total enrollment of 37 undergraduate students, per niche.com.
The Cougars have a modest basketball history — one riddled with huge losses but one that has garnered national amazement and intrigue. Last year, the Associated Press ran a column calling Carver College “college basketball’s equivalent of the Washington Generals, barnstorming from city to city, playing games almost every night, enduring one enormous beating after another.”
This year, Carver College opened the year playing Xavier (a 94-31 loss). The Cougars also played Troy (a 104-42 loss), Gardner-Webb (a 100-38 loss), McNeese State (98-54) and even North Carolina Central on Thursday (102-50).
Per ProBallers, the Cougars came into Saturday night 0-14, averaging 47.3 points and allowing 102.7 points a game. And those stats were dulled but were ultimately predictive of Saturday’s result.
How did the Eagles struggle?
The impetus behind the Eagles’ struggles — at least early? Hard to say.
Saturday night was just generally riddled with turnovers and wrought with rhythmless offense. (At one stretch in the second half, Carver and Winthrop combined for 2 of their last 17 shots.)
The Eagles finished shooting 45% from the field and coughed up 17 turnovers.
They shot 32 threes and only hit 10 (31.3%).
It didn’t help, either, that Winthrop big man DJ Burns, the tactical advantage Winthrop can boast in contests like this, was subdued with a double-team and sometimes triple-team every time he touched the ball. (Case in point: The big man dropped 30 in 22 minutes in the team’s season opener against Division III Mary Baldwin and gave Winthrop an early lead it wouldn’t relinquish. On Saturday? Burns had 14 points — a few points below his season average of 16.2 points per game — and nine rebounds.)
Quick notes
▪ Russell Jones Jr. made his first start of the season on Saturday. Other than him, the rest of the starting lineup stayed intact: DJ Burns, Pat Good, Mike Anumba, Drew Buggs.
▪ Jamal King, a player who loomed large in last year’s 23-2 NCAA tournament team rotation but who hasn’t played much this year, was part of the team’s first substitution. He finished with four points in 19 minutes, including an emphatic fastbreak dunk. Sharp shooter and former Winthrop starter Corbin also played early and often, too, as aforementioned. Nate Buss entered the game at the 3:46 mark and didn’t disappoint: The senior hit a three — and ran back on defense to chants of “M-V-P” from the crowd afterward — and also hit 3 of 3 free throws to finish with six points in three minutes (both career highs).
▪ Kelton Talford notched a career-high 16 points in 19 minutes.
▪ Saturday night provided a reprieve in a busy non-conference slate for Winthrop — one that featured a historic win over Washington and other promising displays against Hartford, Coastal Carolina, Furman and Washington State.
Who do the Eagles play next?
Winthrop plays Elon on Wednesday at Elon. You can listen to the game on the radio on 94.3 FM or on ESPN+ with a valid subscription.
This story was originally published December 11, 2021 at 8:59 PM.
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