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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern men’s basketball team (1-0) will host the 2012 NSU Thanksgiving Classic from Friday, Nov. 23 to Saturday, Nov. 24 at the NSU Arena in the Don Taft University Center.
The Sharks will take on Goldey-Beacom at 5:30 p.m. Friday, while Charleston faces Puerto Rico-Mayaguez immediately after. The losers of each contest will play Saturday at 5:30 p.m., with the winners playing in the championship game at 7:30 p.m.
Head coach Gary Tuell and his staff have put together an unorthodox early season tournament. Instead of bringing in regional teams that the Sharks have a great advantage over, Tuell has brought in nonregional opponents who have a rich history of success.
“We always try to bring in quality teams for any tournament we host, and this year’s Thanksgiving tourney certainly has that,” said Tuell. “The University of Charleston is one of the 25 best NCAA D-II programs in the country and play a very exciting, up-tempo style with a lot of great athletes.
“Goldey-Beacom College has been in their conference post-season championship game for three consecutive years and return three or four starters from last year’s squad, so we know how tough they will be. Both Charleston and Goldey-Beacom are NCAA Tournament-type teams that offer a terrific challenge for ourselves and the fourth participating team, the University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez. We had Mayaguez here last year for a tipoff classic and they performed very well against Valdosta State and Columbus State.”
Charleston enters the game receiving votes in the national poll, despite not playing a regular season game. The Golden Eagles gave D-I Southern Miss. a tough game, losing, 72-58, in the preseason before their season-opener was postponed. Charleston will look to use this tournament as a launching pad back into their usual spot in the national top-25.
Goldey-Beacom, the only team the Sharks know they will play this weekend, has struggled in the early season. They are 1-4, with their only win coming by one point. In that win, their opponent, the University of Sciences, did not score over the final 3:50 of the game. However, history shows Goldey-Beacom will turn it around. The Lightning are perennial contenders in the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference and have advanced to the championship game in three straight seasons.
Puerto Rico-Mayaguez enters the tournament on their annual trip around the south region. The Tarzans are not known to be world beaters, but the consistently give teams the tough games they need to reach midseason form.
“Typically the home team tries to assure itself a place in the championship game of any tournament it hosts, but that’s not how we structured this event,” said Tuell. “We looked long and hard at the field and tried our best to be fair in seeding the teams one through four. Charleston was a no-brainer for the top seed. And based on their recent success and returning players, I felt Goldey-Beacom was a solid second seed.
“We seeded ourselves third and Mayaguez fourth, which gave us what we felt was the best possible tournament. If Mayaguez plays as well against Charleston as they did in our tipoff tourney last year they will be a competitive opening game opponent for the top seed. Our game with Goldey-Beacom should be interesting because of our contrasting styles. All in all, we’re looking forward to a very competitive weekend of college basketball.”
The Sharks are at a disadvantage Friday, in the sense that they have played four less games then their opponent. However, the Sharks looked strong in their season-opener against St. Thomas, winning, 90-78. NSU displayed its depth in the contest, with 10 players getting significant minutes.
Jacob Reed (Jr., Perth, Australia) came off the bench to score a game-high 20 points.
“With only one game under our belt, we’re a little behind Goldey-Beacom,” said Tuell. “They have some returning starters off a very good team last year, and they’ve got a few more games under their belts than we do. So from an execution stand point, they are a bit ahead of us. I was pleased with our effort, if not our execution, in the season-opening win against a very good St. Thomas team. I thought Jacob Reed,
Justin Jeangerard (So., Weaverville, Calif.) and
Sean Mullan (Sr., Mangerton, Australia) all came off the bench and gave us a big lift.
“It’s nice to see Jacob having some success after battling knee injuries and a broken wrist the past three years. He’s finally healthy and able to do what we always thought he could. Justin and Sean play with great energy and really put a charge into our team when they come in.
Iran Hollis (Sr., Hollywood, Fla.) got in foul trouble but I thought he was very productive during his minutes and both
Stian Berg (So., Bairum, Norway) and
Louie Schonauer (Sr., Lincoln, Ill.) did a nice job at the point guard spot.
“We’re learning as we go, and fortunately we have some depth. We don’t have size and we don’t have great athletes but we do have a group of guys who enjoy playing together and are unselfish. They’re fun to coach.”
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