Rock Hill, S.C. -- Winthrop men's basketball looks to remain unbeaten in the Big South Conference when it welcomes Radford to the Winthrop Coliseum, Saturday afternoon.
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WINTHROP (10-6, 1-0 Big South)
| WINTHROP PROBABLE STARTERS (stats from 2022-23) |
| Pos. |
No. |
Name |
Ht. |
Yr. |
PPG |
RPG |
APG |
SPG |
Noteworthy |
| G |
10 |
Nick Johnson |
6-4 |
Sr. |
10.5 |
3.6 |
1.9 |
1.5 |
In double-figures four of the last five games / Season-high 15 points at FSU & vs. Longwood / Dished out career-high 5 assists at Little Rock / Ranks 6th in the Big South in steals per game (1.5) / 1st on team in steals and free throw attempts |
| G |
11 |
Kasen Harrison |
6-2 |
Sr.. |
11.2 |
3.2 |
3.9 |
1.4 |
Tied season-high 19 points in win at PC / Averaging 15.0 ppg through three conference games / Scored 11 points at USC Upstate to reach 1,000 career points / Missed game vs. Toccoa Falls / 23-24 Big South Preseason All-Conference / Passed 300 career assists (329) |
| F |
12 |
K.J. Doucet |
6-7 |
Jr. |
13.2 |
4.2 |
1.6 |
0.6 |
Averaged 15.3 ppg, 5.1 rpg in the month of December (7 games) / Ranks 12th in the Big South in scoring average / Reached 1,000 career points in the game at Coastal and 1,100 vs. Toccoa Falls |
| F |
33 |
Chase Claxton |
6-7 |
Sr. |
3.2 |
4.0 |
0.7 |
0.7 |
Coming off season-high 12 points at PC / Reached 500 career rebounds after six boards at FSU / Program leader in career games played (134) / Led team with 33 steals and 36 blocks in '22-23 |
| F |
4 |
Kelton Talford |
6-7 |
Sr. |
12.8 |
4.9 |
0.7 |
0.6 |
In double-figures last five games (15.0 ppg, 7.3 rpg in that span) / Posted 12th career 20-point game with 20 points at South Carolina / Became 27th Eagle to score 1,000 career points, 20th to reach 1,000 / '23-24 Big South Preseason All-Conference / '22-23 Big South All-Conference First Team / led team in scoring and rebounding in '22-23 |
SERIES HISTORY VERSUS RADFORD
- This will mark the 86th meeting between Winthrop and Radford
- Eagles have dropped three straight meetings as Radford holds a 44-40 lead in the all-time series
- Radford's win on Feb. 1, 2011 over the Eagles was later vacated
- In 85 meetings all-time the Eagles have averaged 66.9 ppg and Radford has averaged 67.8 ppg
AT HOME IN THE BIG SOUTH
- Looking for a fourth straight win at home in conference play
- Hold an all-time record of 198-89 in regular season league contests
- Since 2019-20 the Eagles are 29-5 at the Winthrop Coliseum in regular season matchups
WINTHROPÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â
- Earned a fourth straight win after an 81-71 victory at PC on Wednesday night
- Are 3-0 to start conference play for the 5th time in the last six seasons
- The win over PC was the 50th for Mark Prosser as head coach of the Eagles and it was his 200th game coaching overall
- Winthrop and High Point are the only remaining undefeated teams in league play at 3-0
- Have won seven straight regular season conference games
- The win over Longwood was the seventh straight win at home
- Eagles capped off 2023 with a 113-62 victory over Toccoa Falls
- The 113th points are the 8th most the Eagles have scored in a single-game
- Finished December 4-3 making it the first time since the 2018-19 season the Eagles posted winning records in November and December
- Eagles are the only team in the Big South ranked in the Top 3 of scoring offense (3rd) and scoring defense (2nd)
- Have attempted 178 more free throws than opponents and have made (355) more than opponents have attempted (318)
- K.J. Doucet leads the Eagles in scoring at 13.2 ppg and is 1-of-4 averaging double-figures
- Doucet is joined in double-figures by Kelton Talford (12.8), Kasen Harrison (11.2), and Nick Johnson (10.5)
- Harrison has dished out five or more assists in nine of the last 13 games and is 3rd in the league at 3.9 per game
- In the win over Toccoa Falls the Eagles had 24 assists, which was the first time with 24 or more in a game since an 83-54 win over High Point in 2021 (24 assists)
- In the road win at Coastal Carolina the Eagles grabbed 28 offensive rebounds, the most since having 26 on Jan. 29, 2021 against UNC Asheville
- Entering the 2023-24 season the Eagles had the 31st best home winning percentage among Division I programs over the last 10 seasons
- Voted to finish third in the Big South Conference preseason poll, two votes behind Radford
- This marks the 1,396th game in program history and hold an all-time record of 792-603
- Winthrop has more wins than any other Big South school (236) since the 2012-13 season and the closest is Radford at 200
- Mark Prosser starts his third season as head coach of the Eagles (7th head coach in program history) and holds a 50-32 record over the first three seasons
- Prosser is coaching in his 201st career game and 172nd at the NCAA D1 level
- Led the team to 23 wins, the most by a first-year head coach in program history
- Prosser tied Towson State's Terry Traux (1992-93) for the most conference wins by a first-year coach with 14
LOOKING BACK AT 2022-23
- Talford led the team in scoring and rebounding in 2022-23 as he earned First Team All-Conference honors
- McMahon was third on the team in scoring at 13.4 ppg and was second in three-point field goals made (73)
- Harrison became the team's starting point guard after six games and finished the season averaging 11.5 ppg, 2.4 rpg and 3.8 apg while shooting 48 percent from the floor
- Chase Claxton, who started all 29 games he played last year, also returns after setting career-highs in assists, blocks and steals
- Winthrop returns four starters, a core of reserves and transfers to round out this year's roster
- Highlighting the returners are Talford, Sin'Cere McMahon and Harrison who were all three Big South All-Conference preseason selections
- The Eagles have a veteran lineup with a large amount of experience, starting with the return of Micheal Anumba from injury (missed 2022-23 season) and over four years he played in 120 games with 117 starts
SEASON HONORS/AWARDS
- Noah Van Bibber (Big South Conference Freshman of the Week – Nov. 20)
- Came off the bench vs. Holy Cross and scored a career-high 22 points on 6-of-9 shooting
- Was 6-for-8 behind the arc and 4-for-4 at the foul line
- Finished the Rock Hill Classic averaging 12.7 ppg, 9-of-16 from three and a perfect 7-for-7 at the foul line
CAREER MILESTONES
- Micheal Anumba
- Is sitting 21 rebounds away from 500 in his career
- Scored eight points off the bench at PC and is now 29 points away from 900
- Chase Claxton
- Played in his 100th of his career last season and has 134 total
- The 134 games is the most played by an Eagle in program history (passing George Valentine and Michael Jenkins)
- Became the 20th member of the 500 rebound club, hauling in his 500th in the game at FSU
- Had two blocks at FSU and reached 100 in his career
- His 108 blocks rank 5th all-time
- Now one steal away from 100 in career
- Kasen Harrison
- Reached 1,000 career points in the win at USC Upstate (11 points in the game) and now has 1,022
- Against Queens he reached 300 career assists (329)
- In the final game of the 2022-23 season Harrison hit his 200th career free throw
- Kelton Talford
- Surpassed 500 career rebounds (574) vs. Drexel
- He is the 104th player in Big South Conference history to reach 500 career rebounds
- Reached 1,000 career points vs. Bob Jones and is now the 67th player in league history to join the 1,000/500 club
- Ranks tied for 20th all-time in scoring at Winthrop (1,110) and 13th in total rebounds (574)
- Has 11 career double-doubles after his 20 points, 12 rebounds in the final game of 2022-23
- Sin'Cere McMahon
- Knocked down his 150th career three vs. Queens
- Now has 166 in his career, with 144 of those have come as an Eagle
- His 144 threes rank 12th on Winthrop's all-time list
- Became the 27th player in program history with 100 or more threes in a single-season
- Scored career-high 35 points at UNC Asheville, the 4th most by an Eagle in a conference road game
- Nick Johnson
- Sitting at 901 career points and is eight rebounds away from 400
- Dished out his 100th career assist vs. Queens and one steal away from 100
- Dished out a career-high five assists at Little Rock
- Alex Timmerman
- Moved past the 400 career rebound mark after hauling in five vs. Drexel and now has 480
- Played in his 100th career game on 12/22/23 at FSU
- Surpassed 100 career assists with three vs. Toccoa Falls
- K.J. Doucet
- Surpassed 1,000 career points after 22 points at Coastal Carolina and reached 1,100 vs. Toccoa Falls
- Approaching 400 career rebounds (376)
SINGLE-GAME TICKETS ARE ON SALE
Fans can purchase single-game tickets for all home contests for the 2023-24 season by visiting
www.winthropeagles.com/basketballtickets or call the ticket office at (803) 323-2345.
25th ANNIVERSARY
This year celebrates the 25
th anniversary of the 1998-99 team that captured the first ever Big South Conference regular season championship and made the program's first ever NCAA Tournament appearance. Under the guidance of first-year head coach Gregg Marshall the Eagles posted an overall record of 21-8 and were 9-1 in the conference. Winthrop defeated second-seeded Radford 86-74 in the Big South title game and faced Auburn in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. This team will be inducted into the Winthrop Hall of Fame as a Team of Distinction on Jan. 12, 2024.
TUNE IN TO THE EAGLES
Fans can listen to the games all season long on OTS Media of Rock Hill (94.3 FM), which is the flagship station for Winthrop Athletics. In addition, most games will simulcast on 730 ESPN Charlotte and AM 1450 WGNC Gastonia.
All home games as well as all Big South games home or away are available to watch through the Big South Network on ESPN+. To watch live Big South games on ESPN+, you need a subscriber. For more information how to subscribe,
click here.
UP NEXT
Winthrop returns home after back-to-back road games as it will host Radford on Saturday, Jan. 13 at 2 p.m.
To keep up with the latest news on the Winthrop men's basketball program, follow the Eagles on Twitter (@Winthrop_MBB), Instagram (@Winthrop_MBB) and Facebook (/WinthropMBB).
