Depleted Coastal Carolina men's basketball set for visit with ACC foe Wake Forest

Coastal Carolina basketball coach Cliff Ellis has used his reputation and connections in the coaching ranks to schedule a number of notable series for his Chanticleers against marquee programs the last several seasons.

Usually that has entailed asking a favor of a coaching colleague from Ellis’ two decades in the ACC and SEC, but in the case of the Chants’ game Friday night at Wake Forest –the start of a three-game series between the teams these next few years – it was actually one of Ellis’ neighbors who played the biggest role.

As Ellis recalls, the series – which includes two games in Winston-Salem, N.C., and then a home game for the Chants in 2017 – started from a simple conversation with Don Leonard, a member of Wake Forest’s Board of Trustees.

“He and I were at a Christmas function two years ago and we were talking. He was talking about the program and I said, ‘I’d love to play Wake Forest,’” Ellis recalled. “He said, ‘Well, let me work on it.’ He said, ‘I can’t make it happen, but I will do what I can.’ So anyway, we kept in contact and talked to Danny [Manning] and his people and they agreed to do it.”

These are the kind of series Ellis has used to try to raise the national profile of his Coastal Carolina program. From a matchup standpoint, though, playing the Demon Deacons would have been a lot more appealing a year ago.

Manning is in his second season as head coach at Wake Forest after a successful two-year stint at Tulsa and five years as top assistant at Kansas under Bill Self. After finishing 13-19 last year, his Demon Deacons (7-2) are off to a highly encouraging start with wins already over Indiana, UCLA and Arkansas.

“They got everybody’s attention in Maui with [wins over] Indiana and UCLA,” Ellis said. “ ... They’re a long team, they’re a deep team, their point guard has been out, but he’s back. Danny is in his second year, they’re getting used to his system, but it’s typical Danny Manning – they’ve got power and horses inside and they’re going to ride those horses, they’ve got 3-point shooters and they’ve got a point guard who can finish as good as anybody in the country, I’m told. So we’ve got a tremendous test.”

Manning, renowned for his work in coaching and developing big men, has a standout forward in 6-foot-9, 245-pound senior Devin Thomas, who is averaging 18.6 points and 11.2 rebounds per game. Overall, the Demon Deacons have six players averaging 9.1 points or more per game, including the aforementioned freshman point guard Bryant Crawford (12.4 points per game).

“We’re not a team who backs down from anybody, so we’re just going to play our hearts out and hope for the best,” Coastal Carolina senior forward Tristian Curtis said of the matchup.

The Chants (6-4) would be entering this game with considerable momentum while riding a three-game winning streak, but two significant injuries have depleted the team’s depth and shaken up the rotation.

Senior forward Michel Enanga is headed for knee surgery and junior guard Colton Ray-St Cyr broke his wrist in the Chants’ last game and will now miss about six weeks.

Ray-St Cyr had established himself as a starter and effective two-way player for Coastal Carolina while posting career-best averages of 8.1 points and 5.3 per game, while Enanga was one of Ellis’ most trusted options off the bench.

In their stead, sophomore guard Jaylen Shaw (10.6 points per game) moves back into the starting lineup while junior Ron Trapps should see a bigger role off the bench in the backcourt, and true freshman forward Kevin Holmes Jr., who made his collegiate debut two games ago, will be counted on off the bench as a key reserve in the frontcourt.

“[We’re] dealing with a lot. Next man up,” Ellis said. “... Next in line, that’s all you can do.”

Finding the right balance with that retooled rotation might take some time, but the Chants nonetheless have a veteran core intact with junior guard Elijah Wilson leading the way at 14.5 points per game, junior point guard Shivaughn Wiggins (12.6 points per game) playing steady and senior forward Badou Diagne (12.2 points, 7.3 rebounds per game) always a threat to take over a game.

As for the game Friday night at Wake Forest, regardless of who is or isn’t on the court, the Chants have built an inner confidence that they can compete against teams like this. Since the 2010-11 season, Coastal Carolina is 5-8 in regular-season games against teams from the traditional power conferences, and put a scare into Auburn earlier this month in a narrow 81-78 loss in Conway.

“It gives us confidence, it lets us know that it is a winnable game,” Curtis said. “It’s not going to be easy. ... We’ve just got to execute, keep our turnovers down, execute to the best of our ability and just go there and play confident.”

Said Ellis: “It’s not our first rodeo in games like this, but this is without question the best team that we’ve played and we’re playing them at their place.”

This story was originally published December 17, 2015 at 7:43 PM with the headline "Depleted Coastal Carolina men's basketball set for visit with ACC foe Wake Forest."