SoCon Edition: WINTER STORM Hoops!

This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed human. Not even a winter storm can slow things down in the Southern Conference. SOCON Fast Break starts now. All right, Darren, here we are. Remote opportunity to connect because of the winter storm 2026. And as I just mentioned, it doesn't matter about a winter storm, ice, snow, whatever it might be. Hoops are still going to happen in the Southern Conference as we saw some craziness with the schedule. and teams being shuffled around playing on a Friday right after they played on a Wednesday. But it doesn't matter because we've got basketball. And so why not? Let's have as many days as we can with basketball. Hey, no basketball days off, baby. Let's go. Let's go. We got to find a way. It's not as bad as COVID, right? Like when we'd have, you know, you'd have to play like six games in eight days because you had positive tests and you had to postpone games. So, yeah, we found a way. And look, credit to the Southern Conference. They found a way to get all these games. And I mean, there was not one game that was missed over the weekend. And frankly, I know guys had to play on shorter rest. But, you know, I mean, I think that's just one of those mental things that you got to block out and be ready to go play. Oh, you definitely do. And we're actually going to see something very similar as we head into this week's games in terms of playing on a Thursday and then have to turn around and play on Saturday. So they're already getting accustomed to what we saw based on the reshuffling of the schedule. So that's just part of it. but it didn't take away from some of the games that we saw. They still were fantastic games, some close games, some great performances. We're going to break it all down. So let's take a look at the standings right now. And we can look there at the bottom. And unfortunately for VMI, I mean, they'll shoot some threes. There's no question about it. They're one of the top in the country in terms of three-point attempts. But the problem is just their efficiency right there. Western Carolina, the Citadel right there at 3-5. Samford at 3-5. Chattanooga at 3-5 after an 0-2 week. They had some tough games there on the road. UNCG there at 4-4, the only club that is 500 right now. Mercer, 5-3. Furman, 5-3 depleted Furman team. We'll talk more about that. And how about the Wofford Terriers? 6-2 in the conference right now, 2-0 this past week and had a big win there against Mercer on Saturday, the rescheduled game at 11 a.m. And ETSU, I know we can talk about it, the parity here in the Southern Conference, but ETSU is 7-1, another 2-0 week for them. So as much as we have this parity, I do think there might be one or two teams, maybe three or four teams that are starting to really separate themselves. Anybody can get beat. Anybody can win. I do know that. We've seen it. but you have a team like ETSU because they can do it on both the defensive and the offensive side. Maybe they're just a little bit ahead of everybody else, and I think that's what we see in the standings, Darren. Yeah, no, I completely agree. I think at this point we have realistically, at this point, four teams that can cut down the Nets in Nashville, and those are your top four teams in the league right now. I think that they have absolutely separated themselves. ETSU obviously playing the best of the bunch. I know they're 7-1, and I know I'm probably nitpicking, but I am still a little bit concerned about the road for them just because another, look, great, great win, way to pull it out against Chattanooga. But again, one-point win on the road. So I want to see them maybe get a couple on the road pretty convincingly. But I agree with you. I think the top four teams here really kind of separated themselves. Unfortunately, I think we're kind of starting to see what the bottom looks like. And then there's a couple teams there that, you know, are incredibly inconsistent. When they play well, they can beat anybody. But when they play bad, they can lose anybody. And I think their records reflect that. Obviously, Samford and Chattanooga, I think, probably the two most disappointing teams so far right now, sitting at three and five. But still plenty of basketball left. And both of these teams showed that they can go on runs. I mean, Chattanooga had a three-game win streak going. So, you know, a lot of fun basketball left to play. And I think this one's going to be really fun coming down the stretch here. Oh, I think so, too. Yes. And you talk about and we even mentioned it last week, road wins and you're going to have to be able to showcase that you can go win on the road. That's how you're going to prove that you're one of the contenders here in the Southern Conference. And as we talked about it, that's indicative of every conference out there. But for some of these teams, we're starting to see that the road does have its hazards, so to speak. I know with the winter storm, we've already had some hazards, but there's no doubt that it's very difficult to win on the road, regardless of your offense and defensive efficiency. It's just difficult. That's the reality of it. And we'll take a look at some of the top games. And speaking of a team that struggled a little bit down the stretch, that was Samford at Wofford last week. And this was a situation where this was a close game until the last few minutes of the game. And then Wofford goes on a big 10-0 run basically to finish this game. But this was all about Kamari Holmes putting a team on his back, 36 points. He took over there in the second half, scoring every Terrier point for about a three-minute stretch right there. And that's just what we've seen in terms of the development and the progression, so to speak, the evolution of Kamari Holmes. where this is a guy who averaged, what, like four points per game last year and now is exploding for almost 20 points per game. And this is something that I don't know if we realized just how the cupboard was going to be in terms of talent there for Wofford. Because we talked about the situation with Kevin Giltner coming in as the head coach, last-minute situation, and however we want to determine if it's chaotic or not. But they've got some talent there, and Kamari Holmes is one of those guys. No, you're absolutely right. They certainly have some talent. I mean, look, they're not, they're not, regardless of everything that's happened and how well they've come together, they're not six and two if they don't have talent, right? And so they clearly have talent. They've got good balance. You know, Kamari Holmes is certainly one of the most improved players in the league. We've talked about it before, but he's just been fantastic. I mean, the guy goes 14 of 18 from the free throw. I mean, he shot 18 free throws by himself in that game. He has just been really, really good this year, 10 to 16 from the field, and especially like you mentioned, clutch down the stretch. He is a strong, bigger lead guard that just poses a problem physically for smaller guards in the league, and he's just got the strength to be able to, when he gets downhill, he can get into your body and he can finish through contact. and he does have some wiggle that allows him to create some separation. And so when he really gets going, he's absolutely one of the best players in the league and is a guy that, as we've seen, goes for 36 last week, but can really go off and be a guy that on any given night can carry you to a victory. Yeah, and this was also a Wofford team that they didn't have to rely on shots beyond the arc. They only shot 12 threes in this game and punished Samford inside the paint, 48 points in the paint. And that is indicative of a well-coached team and understanding that sometimes you're going to have to have some physical identity and you're going to have to be able to score inside and have some interior presence. And this was a game that was indicative of it from that standpoint. That was a big win for Wofford and just, again, shows you how quickly things can change for Sanford because they were right in this game. And, you know, Jaden Booth continues to be a stellar player in the Southern Conference, but it is hard to win on the road. And speaking of hard to win on the road, how about this one? Furman at the Citadel, 77-74 in overtime. One of the greatest escapes in program history for the Bulldogs down there in Charleston. Trailing 55-36 with just over 10 minutes to go in the second half in this game. and the Citadel had a 0.5% chance to win. Not 5%, Darren, 0.5% chance to win. And somehow they gathered themselves, they rallied the troops, they circled the wagons, every cliche you want to say from a coaching perspective, but they were able to do it. And Shola at the BC had a fantastic night, 22 points, 9 of 10 from the field. And somehow they made the big shots. And I know there are some questions about the clock management in terms of not the coaches, how they were managing the clock, but how the scorekeeper was managing the clock, the clock operator down the stretch. And should Furman have a few more seconds there? And you can debate all you want, but a 19-point lead, that's one of those games. And you know, Darren, you got to win that game, 19 points. Yeah, you just can't let that one slip away. I was there at that game, actually, and it was one of the wildest basketball games I've ever seen. The Citadel, in about a 12-minute stretch, scored eight points from roughly the under-eight-ish media timeout until about 15 minutes in the second half. They went from 24 points to 32 points. I mean, they literally could not put the ball in the basket, and they couldn't get a whole lot of good looks, and Furman was getting basically anything they wanted. and Furman was in complete control, cruise control on. And I just, like I said, I don't know if I've seen something like a switch flip like it did down 19 with 10 minutes to go, as you mentioned. And it was literally then Furman couldn't find a way to get a bucket and the Citadel all of a sudden could score at will. And, you know, credit the adjustments that the Citadel made, but they were really able to get to the rim. They hit some big threes. One thing that was really evident prior to this run was the Citadel's lack of size. They were really struggling to rebound. And so for him to step up and start to get on the glass a little bit more, that was huge. And Braxton Williams was fantastic down the stretch as well. And look Christian Moore hit some big big threes down the stretch You know this is one that is scary if you Furman because whether they depleted or not this is one of those losses that can really deflate you But credit to them I'm not surprised. Credit to them. They come back and they gave it to UNCG. You know, so I think that they avoided a disaster scenario in letting this thing bleed over. But man, credit to the Citadel. Phenomenal comeback. One of the wildest games I've ever seen, no doubt. Yeah, no question about it. Yeah, as you talk about Christian Moore, Braxton Williams, he'll 7-for-7 from the free throw line. So continuing efficiency there at the free throw line. And as you talked about, Shola, it's, I think, something we were waiting to see a performance like this. Not that he has to have 22-8 every single night, but can he be flirting with a double-double each night? And if you can have that type of production, then I think you're going to see the Citadel, I should say, competitive down the stretch. And this was out Carter Kingsbury also. So this was a situation where you're looking at the Citadel being able to utilize some guys, getting some extra minutes, and they were productive in that win. All right, how about this close one? The Battle of Tennessee. ETSU squeaks out the game on the road at Chattanooga, and we talked about how hard it is to win on the road. But if you've got Blake Barkley, you've got a good opportunity to win because he just does it once again, just a tactical battle just from a rebounding identity. And ETSU wasn't shooting the ball well, especially from beyond the arc. But somehow Cam Morris III just continues to be a guy that he might not get a lot of the headlines, but he just does all of the dirty work. And you look up and he's got a double-double, 21 points and 11 rebounds. And you're like, how in the hell did that happen? But that's just what we see with Cam Morris III. No, it is. And look, the flip of what I've been preaching about ETSU needing to play better on the road is credit to them for grinding one out here and finding a way to win one. Because this is one of these games that could come back and you may, you know, we'll see how the final standings shake out. But this could be a game that we come back and we look at heading into Asheville as this was the game that helped ETSU take home a regular season Southern Conference championship. Finding a way to grind this one out, frankly, I mean, didn't play poorly, but didn't play great. They didn't get much out of anybody other than Morris, Taylor, and Barkley, offensively at least. and shot 15% from three for the game, one to 10 in the first half, two to nine in the second, and only 42% from the field for the game. So a really good job of their ability to say, look, we're going to have to hang our hats on what our calling card has been, and that's on the defensive end this year. And they did it. They created 14 turnovers. And look, they did a pretty good job defensively too. Chad only shot 43% from the field, 34 you know from three and you know so credit credit to ETSU got 46 points in the paint so again you know we talk about it with Chattanooga just really struggling to get much out of the interior offensively and defensively right now and that's unfortunately been a theme all year with Colin Mulholland just not being able to be him yeah with the injuries he had but huge win you know I think a very underestimated win for ETSU here. Oh I think so too again on the road as Blake Barkley comes down, takes the pass from Brian Taylor, and tries to get to the basket and gets fouled there with about four seconds to go and buries the free throws there. And that's just what we see consistently over the past five or six games from Blake Barkley is that he's able to hit some of these big shots and these big moments. He doesn't shy away from that. And so When you have that, and then you also are able to outscore your opponent 18-3 in second chance points, that's going to be another opportunity for you to win a close game. And ETSU was able to do that. And I think you're right. There could be something about as we get at the end of the season and the standings, a game like that, that could be the separator in terms of where your seating is going to be in Asheville. So these games are so important. All right, another game that could have some implications as Wofford gets the victory there at home against Mercer. 11 a.m. start, got rescheduled, and we know that. And now Wofford is able to climb solely into second place, and I was there for this game. And just another fantastic performance by Kamari Holmes, being able to put a team on his back, so to speak, and just showcasing that Wofford, they are a dangerous team. And especially as Mercer coming in and Mercer exploded there, at least in terms of what we typically would see for Mercer in the first half, scoring 43 points. But Wofford did a great job of shutting them down in the second half and then allowing Kamari Holmes, which you talked about, to get downhill. And it was a great matchup in terms of Baraka, Koje and Kamari Holmes going at each other. I mean, pound for pound, they are two of the best guards in the Southern Conference. And also, Wofford did a really good job. I think the scouting report was going to be, can we slow down Armani Mighty? We cannot have him beat us in the paint. And he got two early fouls, so to speak, in the first 10 minutes there in the first half. And that seemed to just mess up the rhythm of Armani Mighty. And it came down to basically the final play. And Barack Okoje is not able to hit the game tie in three. And was there a foul? I don't know. So it's questionable if there was a foul or not, but just another fantastic performance there from Wofford. Yeah, and I mean, Kamari Holmes, 31.5 points per game for the week. Yeah, scored 27 in this game. Not terrible, not terrible. I mean, average 31.5 and I think about five, five and a half assists for the week because he had seven against Mercer. But look, to your point, I mean, this is also a game that I think could have big time implications on seeding and credit for what credit to Wofford taking care of home court. The way to get it done shot the ball well from three, 40, 44 percent from three. Conversely, guarded the three well, held a really, really good offensive team in the Mercer Bears to 33 percent from three and 42 percent from the field, including 36 in the second half. So got stops when they needed it and really found a way to defend when they needed to. But, you know, you look at this game, to your point, back and forth, you know, and Baraka Koji, 12 for 12 from the free throw line. Yes. You know, you talk about him and Kamari Holmes going at it. Two of the best in the league, like you said. So this was a fun game to watch. I'm sure you enjoyed it live. It was great in person. It definitely was. And it just gives you a different perspective of how talented these teams are and how physical it is, even out on the perimeter. I mean, there's hand checking, there's, you know, arm bars, there's all types of stuff. And that's out on the perimeter. I'm not even talking about interior where it gets even more physical. But Kamari Holmes, he did have 27 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. I mean, he's flirting with a triple double in this game. And there was also a spectacular play, though, that I saw Mercer, Connor Servin, and I was just waiting to hear Bill Raftery as we came up on the anniversary of, Send it in Jerome, when Jerome Lane ripped down the backboard there at Pittsburgh a long time ago in the 80s. But Connor Servin, he takes a pass from Koje. And Brian, I want you to roll this clip right here. But watch Connor Servin as he goes up and he just seems to continue to elevate. Then with the left hand, Monster throws it down and it just quieted the crowd for a moment because there were some Wofford students there at that basket. And they were giving Mercer some grief there and it just kind of, ooh, once Servin was able to slam that home. But again, I think what you were able to see is that Armani Mighty, he's such a vital piece there for Mercer. And him just not being able to get into any offensive rhythm, at least early on, dictated a lot what was happening. And you had to rely on Barako Koje. And he almost saved the day for Mercer. But it was a great win for Wofford there again. Now they're in second place overall in the standings. And then also got to talk about the Chattanooga-Samford game, 75-64, because I thought this was a big game just in terms of Samford. They were on a four-game losing streak, and we talked about, you even mentioned it, that little bit of disappointing start to the conference slate for Samford. They lost some tough games, and we even talked about it, that losing on the road there against Wofford. So you felt that you had to have a home win. You had to have this opportunity to get a win against Chattanooga, who has been battling injuries. And so this was all about getting to the free throw line. And we saw that they shot 32 free throws just in the second half, Darren. Just in the second half. I mean, it's absolutely bizarre. But another big game from Jaden Booth, 28 points, six three-pointers in this game, continuing to lead the nation, and three-pointers made per game at just over four. So a huge win for Lenny Acuff and the Samford Bulldogs. Yeah, you know, I mean, without being dramatic, like you could argue that this was really a must win for them if they want to. No doubt. If they want to have any chance to really kind of have a top four seed in the league or maybe even, you know, obviously put themselves, give themselves some distance between making sure that they don't play on the first day. So this was a huge, huge game for that. I liked what I saw in the second half from them here. They found a way to get some separation here. They are, you know, and I mean this, this is like a backhanded compliment, but they're so frustrating at times because like they have the talent where they could, you know, creep into competing in the top four. But they seem to just have these lulls because you know look we both agree stats don tell the whole story But if you look at them statistically like they you know they just outside that upper echelon in just about every meaningful statistical category but they just seem to have these peaks and valleys And it's really hard when, when you're not able to consistently play 40 minutes of basketball, when you dig yourself a hole or when you have these lulls, you know, and I think one of the things for them is, is being able to look, you've got Booth and you've got Faulkner and Norris has been solid, right? Yes, he has. But you're not getting a lot out of anybody else consistently, right? You're getting good performances out of other guys, but it's just not been consistent enough. And, you know, obviously they had a major injury, you know, before the season started. But I think if they can figure out a way to get a consistent third and fourth guy into double figures and, frankly, be more consistent defensively, you know, This is a team that could reel off. As much as they lost, you know, they had a losing streak, they could reel off three or four in a row and put themselves right back into that conversation of kind of creeping into the top four there. So big win for them, needed this one for sure. And also I think where they're kind of packed in with Chattanooga right now, this is one they need to get from a seeding perspective too, even outside the top four. You know, look, if you're outside the top four, obviously you want to be five, right? No-brainer there. So this was a good get for them to kind of hopefully separate themselves from Chattanooga here, too. Yeah, and a rematch win also. And I think from Sanford's standpoint to what you're talking about, kind of the roller coaster ride, if they have one thing that is in their favor that can help them be a little bit more consistent, and I think it's their safety net, is they don't turn the ball over. They're number four in the nation in turnovers per game at roughly nine per game. So if you can have that opportunity of maintaining your possessions, and that's why I think Sanford is in a lot of these games. It's just they have these stretches that you're talking about where for whatever reason, they seem to falter down the stretch. All right, team of the week though. Let's look at some of the contenders because I do have ETSU as a contender, 2-0 this past week and top of the standings. You can't say that they're not an opportunity to be named team of the week. I would even look at Furman as a contender. Again, they went 1-1. I thought it was a big situation that they were able to go on the road, as you talked about, against UNCG and get a blowout win. Tom House goes off. The House was on fire there. Yes. Seven of ten from beyond the arc. Yes, no doubt. And especially after the tough loss against the Citadel, they're so depleted also. So I would throw them as a contender here as Team of the Week. But I'm going with the Wofford Terriers, man. Six and two now. in the conference, 2-0, 14-7 overall. They've won three in a row, and they've been able, now I know it's been both home wins this past week, but still, I just think that how you're able to win in multiple ways for Wofford, it's showing the maturity of the team, that you're not relying just on the three-point shot. You can go interior. You can have an opportunity of slowing down one of the best offenses in the Southern Conference, and that is Mercer. And so what Kevin Giltner has been able to do based on the talent that he has. Don't forget about a Chase Watley. I mean, he made some huge free throws in that Mercer game that helped them seal that win. And also, I think there's this clutch factor. They go on the 10-0 run against Samford, and that closes that game out. And then they're also able to hit, as I mentioned, some of those key free throws. And Kamari Holmes hitting some big shots down the stretch. And also Caden Vasco. I mean, you've got a guy who's lead the nation in assist to turnover ratio. That is fantastic. That's a stabilizer just in itself. And then you've got Niels Mahofsky. I mean, he can light it up and from any place on the court at any moment. So I'm going with the Wofford Terriers this week. Yeah, look, I mean, that's who I had as well. I mean, I'll just kind of throw in a couple of things. And then just for purposes of maybe highlighting someone else, you know, I got a couple of things on ETSU that I think are solid arguments. But to your point, I would vote Wofford as well here. Look, they lose two in a row to Mercer and Chattanooga last week or a week and a half, I guess you can say, ago. And what do they do? They come back and get a monster win at Furman and then take care of home court against Sanford and Mercer, right? So you get a quick rematch against Mercer and you know, look, we got to split with Mercer. We know that they're most likely a top four team. So we got to make sure we split with them from a seeding perspective and get that one. Just a fantastic job, you know, and, and, and to your point, getting really good balance, figuring out ways to win in different ways, which come, come March, you're going to need to do. You're just going to have to figure out ways to grind out wins in different ways. So I would agree with you Wofford for me team of the week, but, but just to give a couple thoughts on ETSU, you know, look, That game at Chattanooga, that's not an easy road game, right? And Chattanooga had come off, you know, reeling off three, three in a row. They looked like they were starting to play better. And credit to ETSU, does not play great offensively, does not shoot particularly well, and finds a way to grind that one out. And then look, say what you want. It's a home game. That is one of the toughest places to play, in that being Freedom Hall. and say that it's the Citadel. But look, the Citadel was just coming off a massive comeback win, like we talked about against Furman, and had won three out of four, I believe, in the league. And you just absolutely go to work, the Citadel Bulldogs, with a 30-point win. So I think for them, a little bit of kind of a statement week of getting a big one on the road at Chattanooga, finding a way to grind it out when you did not have your A stuff, and then coming back home and blasting the Citadel. So I agree with you. I think Wofford's the choice as well. But give some, obviously, as you did, you put them in running for that. But just to give a couple thoughts on ETSU, I think they made a really strong case as well for the week that they had. Yeah, no question about it. And Wofford, I think they do a great job from a coaching perspective. They will throw in the 1-3-1 zone at times, and it seems to throw off the offensive rhythm of any team that they're facing. And that's indicative of, hey, I know they want to play man, but sometimes you've got to mix things up so that they do a great job with Kevin Giltner and the rest of the coaching staff there. And also, hey, Davis Miller, one of the players from Wofford, came up to me and said, hey, man, you're SoCon Fastbreak. I'm a subscriber, and I've got the notifications set. Let's go. I loved it. I was like, let's go. And hey, anybody else out there, that's how easy it is. Just hit that subscriber follow button wherever you get your podcast. YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, including the iHeartRadio app. It's easy. Davis Miller did it, and so you can do the same thing. All right. How about the player spotlight? Man, you talk about some performances here. Yes, sir. You can talk with Alex Wilkins. You can talk about Alex Wilkins. Seems like we talk about him every week as he had 27 points, 6 assists against UNCG. But the key thing is there, he's finally slowing down on the turnovers. Didn't have a turnover. And so he is a dual threat playmaking person there for Furman. Justin Neely, 22 points, 22 rebounds against VMI. Model of consistency. Model of consistency. Almost had another double-double there in that Furman game. Jaden Booth, we talked about him. He had 55 points in the past two games. and that's just maintaining what we see from him. And again, number one nationally from a three-point shooting, field goals made, I should say, threes made. And then Shola Adebisi at the Citadel, I have to give him some credit because, again, we were waiting for a game like this, and it was even more impactful that it was in a win against Furman in overtime, 22 points, 9 of 10 from the field, and then, as you mentioned, 8 rebounds. Cam Morris III, ETSU, again, he's a physical double-double consistently. I know that doesn't happen every night, but he's that type of threat as far as what I see. And then Blake Barkley. I mean, my goodness, he's having all of these game-winning shots, free throws, what a tip ends, it doesn't matter. It seems, again, how he's been able to elevate his game. And then Barack O'Koje, my goodness. 25 points per game this past week, 27 against Wofford. And in all reality, he could easily be the player of the week. And this is something that where it's almost timing situation where based on, and we can go back to like the Michael Jordan days and you've got Charles Barkley, you've got Clyde Drexler, you've got the Patrick Younes of the world. They couldn't get by Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls, or maybe they have NBA championships. And I think it's the same way here. There's so much talent, especially out on the perimeter, that you could easily give it to Barack O'Koje. But I'm going player of the week, and we don't know what the Southern Conference is going to do because we're recording it here on Monday, January 26th in this winter storm. But I'm going with Kamari Holmes. You can't tell me he's not the player of the week after his performance and leading the Wofford Terriers to a 2-0 week. No, you're not going to get an argument out of me on that one. I think that would be my choice for player of the week, and that doesn't take anything away from the performances that you just mentioned. But as I said earlier, averaged 31.5 a game and two big wins, and flirted with a triple-double there in the second game of the week. And so just an incredible week for him. You mentioned Blake Barkley. He's doing more than the little things. so I want to make it clear like he's playing great but he is doing those little things like you mentioned that are just really impacting winning um and so that can't go unnoticed and has not gone unnoticed at least from I think our our eyes you know and one guy that I do that I do think certainly want to highlight we talked a little bit about it earlier but it's Tom House against UNCG pouring in 25 points you know seven three look if he can get going and kind of how he did towards the second half of the season last year really shooting it at the clip that he capable of that puts Furman in a different level as well And especially with some of the injuries that they've got, you know, if he can start to really give you pretty consistent three-point shooting numbers on a nightly basis, if and when they get back to full strength, man, now you got him and Asa Thomas on either wing. That puts Furman in a really different level. And so really excited and happy for Tom House to see him kind of have a real breakout performance there against UNCG, and they needed it, frankly. Yeah, and what I think also separates Kamari Holmes is his intensity and defensive motor. I mean, he is not a just scorer. We talked about he's a facilitator, but he just has that grit. And you talked about he's physical. He can get to the rim and he can absorb contact. So Kamari Holmes, I'm saying that he's player of the week here in the Southern Conference. All right, we got to be moving. Stat of the week, the 2020, or I should say the 22-22 vision. For all you Taylor Swift fans out there, the number 22, as we talked about it, Justin Neely, 22 points and 22 rebounds, but also Braxton Williams of the Citadel. He's a perfect 22 of 22 in his last six games at the free throw line. Yeah, that's a model of consistency right there. And again, he took over there at the free throw line in Citadel's 0.5% chance to win against the Furman. But how about this? This is a stat I'm going with. Sam Samford's free throws in the second half versus Chattanooga 21 of 32. So not a great percentage, but how about this? They missed 10 of their first 13 free throws to start the second half. And then the final eight minutes and 28 seconds, they finished 18 of 19. I mean, how in the world do you go from missing 10 of 13 and then you go 18 of 19 in the last eight and a half minutes of the game? That is absurd. That is a crazy stat right there. It is. And I think that's almost like a perfect example of kind of how Sanford has been this year, of just the roller coaster that they are and the little things and how much they matter. I mean, you can't tell me that somehow there's not a lack of concentration or some other mental piece there that's playing a role if you miss 10 of 13 and then go 18 of 19, right? That tells me you're very capable of shooting at a much more consistent clip overall from the free throw line. So to me, man, can they just lock in and find that level of consistency? That is a crazy, crazy stat right there. No doubt. All right, power rankings. Let's roll through these. Number 10, VMI. They lead the nation from volume deep threes. I should say they're one of the top in the nation, but they just don't have the efficiency that goes along with it. And we don't have Ricky Bradley Jr. also. I mean, they're depleted, no volley. So there's situations where they don't have the full strength, the full firepower. The Citadel at number nine. Again, they continue. I know they're going to, if they can find some other ways to win, they will climb up these power rankings. Western Carolina, they're at eight. And Chattanooga at seven. UNCG at six. And I think a lot of these teams, we've talked about it, Darren, they're so close. So there's not a whole lot of separation when you're looking at it in this bunch of teams. No, for sure. I think that's kind of the core group right there of probably chat, UNCG, and Western in terms of who can find their way out of playing opening night in Asheville. I think I would, picking at straws, I would probably swap UNCG for chat. I just struggle with UNCG this year with their defensive consistency. I mean, giving up 89 at home to a depleted Furman team, you know, look, credit to Coach Ritchie and that staff and those guys. I mean, they came out and they were ready to go. But I mean, to give up 89 points on your home floor when that's when that's your identity as a program. Yeah. And it was all in the second half, really, as far as I mean, this was a close game there in the first half. It was a five point game at half. Yeah. Yes. So it's the lack of consistency on the defensive end that, yeah, is I know driving Mike Jones crazy and it's got to be driving some of the Spartans fans crazy. And I think that's why you're sitting there at four and four, because you have the highs and the lows and you just are right there in the middle of the pack from the conference standing. So I do understand that, yes, you could flip those. How about Samford at number five? Furman at number four. Mercer at number three. Wofford climbs up to number two. And ETSU still sitting there at number one. Again, Not a whole lot of separation because I know you could probably flip Furman, Mercer. You could flip Mercer, Wofford if you wanted to. But I still think that ETSU is the front runner. Yeah, I agree with you. And frankly, I agree with you on those top five. And that's where, you know, because we don't talk. We always want it. We always try to see where our power rankings may differ. So we don't talk about this before the show. But I would completely agree with you on those top five. Now, I do think the top four, and we touched upon this a little bit earlier in the show. So I think the top four, there's a clear separation between those top four. That's right. And then there's a gap. Yeah, before you get to Sanford. And then I think five through seven are really clumped in. And then there's probably another gap, eight through ten. But I agree with you on these top five. Again, like you said, you could pick at straws and probably swap a couple others. But today, I think that ETSU has illustrated that they are the team to beat in the league. And look, Wofford has played close to as well. I mean, look, coulda, woulda, shoulda. But somehow they figured out a way to pull that chat game out at home about 10 days ago. They're sitting there with one loss too, right? So I do think those are the two best teams in the league right now in terms of the consistency in which they've played at. But those top four teams, look, there's a lot of basketball left. It's going to take some winning streak to catch ETSU, given that they're two games ahead of three and four there. But if we looked up at the power rankings going into Asheville and you told me any one of those four teams somehow figured out a way to win, it wouldn't surprise me, right? But ETSU is certainly starting to separate themselves there at the top. Yeah, no question about it. All right, games to watch coming up this week at UNCG at Mercer on the 29th. As we talked about it, it's Thursday's slate of games and then Saturday's slate of games. So it is going to be jam-packed with SoCon hoops. And this one, I mean, I'm very interested in this game to see Neely and Mighty go at it with each other there in the paint. And, you know, can there be an opportunity in terms of Neely? He can step out where Armani mighty. He's going to play all in the post right there on the low block. And, you know, can they get some opportunities really getting him involved? So that's a big opportunity right there for Mercer to get back home because Mercer has been on the road quite a bit. And now I think we're going to see, you know, a situation where Mercer is going to have more home games coming down the stretch, so to speak. So it's going to balance out. How about Wofford at Chattanooga on the 29th? 29th. And again, I think the hottest player in the league right now outside of Baraka Koje is Kamari Holmes. And so now, Wofford, you've had some of these wins at home. Now, can you take it on the road? And again, a rematch type of game. Western Carolina at ETSU. Oh, this is a big one because it's a clash of physical identities, Darren. but also it's the rematch. The one loss there for ETSU was at the hands of Western Carolina. So now how will ETSU respond to this game? Yeah. I mean, look, if I'm ETSU, I'm at home, I'm licking my chops for this one. I want to come out there and I want to embarrass them on our home floor. I mean, that's my mindset going to that game if I'm on that roster. I am really curious to see the UNCG-Mercer game. I mean, I like Mercer in this game, but you mentioned it in that Neely can step out and play away from the rim. You know, what sort of stuff can Coach Jones draw up that potentially brings Armani Mighty away from the rim? You know, and does Mercer consider cross-matching to potentially keep, you know, Armani Mighty more in the paint to be able to protect that rim? And, you know, so I think that is, you know, There's some intrigue there in terms of schematics. And then, look, like you mentioned with Wofford Chattanooga, chat got them at their place. Wofford's got to go in there and take care of business, get this one on the road. That chat trip is never an easy one. That's right. An easy place to play. And so, look, can you go take care of a game on the road that you need to get to be able to keep pace with ETSU? Yes. All right. How about this on the 31st? 31st, ETSU at Wofford, because this potentially could be one versus two in the standings based on how the games on the 29th go. So I'm definitely looking forward to that one. And then we do have one game on Sunday because it did get moved for a nationally televised game. That's Chattanooga at Furman. And we saw that Furman was able to go on the road, beat Chattanooga. So now a rematch type of opportunity for Dan Earle's squad coming to Greenville. And I would imagine everything will be fine from the winter storm by then. It'll all be melted or maybe there's a few remnants. But that's the beautiful thing. Hey, we know this is not in our normal studio, but we got it done. Another episode of SoCon Fast Break as we have a lot of action that we still are going to be able to go over. And all you have to do if you want to hear more of that is just hit that follow or subscribe button. 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