Every Game Is Beautiful- Looking Ahead to Friday

Play the SoCon Tourney Challenge!

Every single game is beautiful. Trust me.

The SoCon Tournament is not the most anticipated conference tournament in the country, to say the least. But that does not mean that the SoCon Tournament is not one that can have tight games and really exciting moments.

I've heard people say that Friday can be skipped in the SoCon Tournament. Not so fast. Every game is beautiful. Every single one. Including those Friday games. Let's talk about those games and why you should care about them- even if your team is not involved.

Samford vs. Appalachian State, 11:00 AM

This will be a very nice way to start the tournament. Samford has not won a SoCon Tournament game since March 7, 2009. That means they have lost five straight SoCon games. Appalachian State is leaving the SoCon once their season is complete. Samford's Tim Williams is an excellent player and worth the price of admission. The Mountaineers beat the Bulldogs twice this year, both times by six points. The Mountaineers will likely not have Jay Canty or Mike Neal. They will have Tommy Spagnolo. Spagnolo against Williams? I won't turn down that match-up. This is an evenly matched battle in the tournament opener. Should be a pretty close game.

Georgia Southern vs. Furman, 1:30 PM

The Paladins lost their regular season finale at home against the Eagles. The Paladins lost in overtime at Georgia Southern. The Paladins have won a SoCon Tournament game each of the last three years. The Eagles have won one each of the last two. The Eagles have great guard play with Jelani Hewitt and Tre Bussey. But Stephen Croone may be even better for the Paladins. Croone. Hewitt. Bussey. Yep- that's some guard play. It certainly is the best overall guard play that is playing on Friday. It's worth watching just to see that match-up. Kendrec Ferrara and Adonis Rwabigwi are interesting inside players for the Paladins. This one ought to be another interesting match-up.

UNCG vs. The Citadel, 4:00 PM

Only one Friday match-up is between two teams entering having won their last game. That match-up is this one. The Bulldogs don't have a ton of talent, but with Ashton Moore and Matt Van Scyoc, this team has some scorers. They also play hard. Now, suddenly, they are playing with confidence, after beating Samford and blowing out Georgia Southern in their last two games. The Spartans beat The Citadel at home in overtime earlier this year. Kyle Cain, Kayel Locke and RJ White can be very good inside players. Tevon Saddler is an underrated guard. The Spartans are so erratic. They beat Wofford at Wofford last Saturday and would love to be playing Wofford again on Saturday. This game, despite matching up the six and the eleven seed, may be the best game of the day now that the Bulldogs are playing with confidence. Nice way to finish up the day.