SoCon Saturday Preview

A daily preview of each SoCon game.

Saturday Thought

The final night of SoCon action takes place tonight. Who knows what seeding positions will be on the line? Davidson and Elon will hook up in a rematch of an overtime classic in Davidson which the Phoenix won. Should be an entertaining final day as we find out where teams will be seeded heading into the SoCon Tournament.

Western Carolina at Samford

The Catamounts have struggled away from home this year. Will they show up for a very important game at Samford? The Bulldogs have struggled to put together back-to-back great games. But they have a much better chance of putting that together at home. Tim Williams and Raijon Kelly will need to come up with solid performances. Williams against the Catamounts Tawaski King will be a tremendous match-up. The Bulldogs are a good offensive team, but not a good defensive team. Brandon Boggs is one of the SoCon's more underrated players. Will he have a big game in this one? Possibly. I think Samford comes up with the home upset to close out the regular season. Bulldogs 76, Catamounts 75.

Appalachian State at Chattanooga

The Mocs are struggling right now. Make no mistake about that. However, this is Z Mason's Senior Night and the Mocs will need to show up. The Mountaineers have not been playing great basketball. The Mocs will have a shot at the third seed heading into Saturday night regardless of Thursday's outcomes, and possibly have a shot at the two seed, depending on Thursday's results. Jay Canty had a good game the last time these two teams matched up in Boone. Tommy Spagnolo has stepped up since then. Gee McGhee and Casey Jones seem like the two Mocs most likely to have big games against these Mountaineers in this one. Also, look for Mason to have a huge night as well. The Mocs pull off the home win to wrap up the season. Mocs 78, Mountaineers 69.

Davidson at Elon

The Phoenix beat Davidson in overtime and could possibly be playing for the one seed in this one. They could also be playing for locking down the two seed. Or both teams could have locked the one and two seed positions heading into this one. Can DeMon Brooks stay out of foul trouble this time around? How intense will the game be if both teams have locked up their seeding? Lucas Troutman against DeMon Brooks is almost as good as it gets in the SoCon. Davidson really wants revenge. Elon really wants to come up with the sweep and prove themselves. Davidson will want it just a little more. Wildcats 77, Phoenix 74.

UNCG at Wofford

The Spartans will likely be playing with the six seed on the line. The Terriers will be playing for possibly as high as the two seed. They could fall all the way to the five seed with a loss. The Spartans will need Kayel Locke, RJ White and Kyle Cain to dominate in the paint against the smaller Terriers. However, Tevon Saddler and his ability may be more important in this one. He will be matching up with Karl Cochran and Spencer Collins. That will be very difficult for the Spartans defense to control those two guys. This is a great opportunity for the Spartans, but the Terriers are the favorite in this one. Wofford will play very well in this one, unless their confidence is shot after Elon and Davidson. Terriers 69, Spartans 58.

Georgia Southern at The Citadel

The Eagles have Jelani Hewitt and Tre Bussey. The question is what does Ashton Moore do for the Bulldogs. Moore has been playing so well. Can he keep it up? How much will this game matter to the Bulldogs? Will they get back-to-back wins? Or will the Eagles win as they strive to get all the way up to the six seed? This should be a pretty good game, actually, particularly if The Citadel continues to improve and play with confidence after their win over Samford. That being said, Hewitt and Bussey are really good players and will be too much for the Bulldogs. Eagles 65, Bulldogs 61.