HAMPTON, VA. – Finally.
Martin Kalu drove to the paint in the first half against Hampton, pulled up from about 12 feet away from the basket and lofted a picture-perfect shot toward the rim.
When the ball swished through the hoop, the German native looked to the heavens with a smile on face as he ran back down the court to play defense.
In the five previous games, the 6-5 Kalu had scored a grand total of 9 points. To say that he had struggled with his shooting during the month of February would be a vast understatement.
Kalu had made just three of his last 24 shots from the field, which included 1 of 15 3-pointers headed into Monday morning’s “Education Day” matchup against Hampton.
Kalu finished with game-high 21 points and Christian Reeves recorded his eighth double-double of the season with 16 points and 12 rebounds as College of Charleston cruised to an 85-71 win over the Pirates before a crowd of 1,017 at the Convocation Center on Feb. 26.
It was the fourth straight win for the Cougars (20-10, 13-4 Coastal Athletic Association) and secured at least the No. 2 seed at next month’s CAA Basketball Tournament in Washington. The Pirates (12-17, 6-10) lost for only the second time this season at home.
It wasn’t the fact that Kalu was able to find his offensive scoring touch again that impressed Cougars coach Chris Mack as much as the way the freshman was able to score.
“It wasn’t one of those games where he went 5 of 6 from 3 to get his points,” Mack said. “Everyone wants to shoot the ball well. Martin was cutting to the basket, and his teammates were finding him. He was aggressive, he went to the rim and got rewarded either by making the shot or getting to the free-throw line.
“I love the fact that he was a big part of our offense with the way he did it. Not necessarily because he hit a few shots from 3.”
Kalu was just happy to see the ball go through the net again.
“I’ve been struggling,” Kalu said with a chuckle. “I was still trying to be a part of the game, playing defense and rebounding the ball. I felt if I did the little things, eventually my shots would start to fall. As soon as the first shot went in, I gained a lot of confidence.”