The College of Charleston Cougars advance to the second round of the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) after defeating the Dayton Flyers on Monday night (94-84).The sixth-seeded Cougars (25-10) will take on second-seed Cleveland State in the next round, which will be played March 18-21 (location TBA).
Senior SoCon Player of the Year Andrew Goudelock didn’t disappoint the near sellout crowd of 4,717 for his final game at the Carolina First Arena. He scored a career high 39 points, including eight three-pointers, and eclipsed the 2,500 career point mark.
Goudelock knew the shots would start to fall, even after he missed his first five attempts Tuesday night.
“I get this feeling. My hands get kind of warm,” he said. “I know what’s going to happen.”
“Drew put on a show. It was good to see,” Cougars coach Bobby Cremins said.
The senior’s first three-pointer gave Charleston the lead for good, 20-18. The senior hit two 3s three minutes later that pushed the lead to 31-21.
“I knew if Drew could get hot, they’d have trouble guarding him,” Cremins said
Goudelock kept it up after halftime, adding a 3 and a jumper that gave the Cougars their largest lead at 73-55 with eight minutes left.
Donavan Monroe added 23 points for the Cougars, who were 30 of 38 from the foul line. Goudelock surpassed his previous best of 34 points set last month against Elon. His eight 3-pointers tied his career high.