CHARLESTON – Wednesday night, Charleston Southern traveled to Rock Hill, South Carolina's Winthrop Coliseum for their third Big South Conference game of the season. The Buccaneers would fall to the Eagles, 81-77 – their first loss since before the Christmas holiday.

In the wake of last season's triple-overtime marathon in Rock Hill, a competitive battle ensued from the initial jump ball Wednesday night as neither team held a two possession lead for the game's first seven minutes. Thanks to their big men, Reis Jones, Lase Olalere, and Devin Brafford, the Buccaneers were primarily led by their presence at the rim to start the contest.

Beginning at the 16:10 mark, the Eagles would go cold for approximately the next six minutes – only converting one field goal in the time frame. Taking advantage on their own offensive end, Charleston Southern was able to stretch to a seven-point lead (19-12).

Through the back-half of the first period, a large Eagle run would regain the Winthrop-lead, 32-30. A half-court heave by the Eagles' Isaiah Wilson would send the Bucs to the halftime-locker room down by one, 37-36.

After trailing for a brief period to start the second-half, the Eagles' Kareem Rozier would knock down a three-ball to tie the game at 57. On the following possession, CSU's own point guard, Luke Williams would return with a made three of his own, retaking the lead, 60-57.

At the under eight-minute media timeout, the Bucs would remain ahead, this time by six (64-58). Shortly after that timeout, adversity in the form of fouling out would plague the CSU frontcourt. At the 6:27 mark, Lase Olalere would pick up his fifth and final foul of the night, and not far behind him (5:53 remaining), Reis Jones would do the same. Following the exit of CSU's two highest-played big men, the Eagles immediately fed the reigning Big South Player of the Week, 6'11" Logan Duncomb – who would score on back-to-back possessions (68-68).

With 2:09 remaining, two Jesse Hafemeister free throws would tie the game against, this time at 75-75. A converted and-one by Duncomb would give Winthrop the 78-75 advantage, and the Bucs would not ever close that gap – eventually falling to Winthrop, 81-77.

Notables:

• Four Buccaneers would reach double-figures in the scoring column – led by A'lahn Sumler's 22 points.

• Senior Reis Jones would score a team-second 15 points, tying his season-high for points in a single game.

• The Bucs would only make 8 three-pointers in the contest, just one above their season-low. Defensively they would make long-range attempts difficult for Winthrop as well, holding the Eagles to just 18% (4-22).

Up Next:

Charleston Southern looks ahead to back-to-back home games in the next seven days, hosting High Point on January 10th at 2:00 PM, followed by USC Upstate on January 14th at 7:00 PM. Both contests are slated to be broadcast on ESPN+.

To see a full sit-down conversation with Coach Nimley discussing the Bucs' next opponents and previous game recaps, watch the "2025-2026 Nimley Coaches Show" on CSUsports.com, X/Twitter, or YouTube.

For all the most up-to-date coverage involving CSU Men's Basketball, follow us on Instagram and X/Twitter @csu_mbball.