The calendar is about to flip to 2025, and it’s time to buckle in for the UNCW basketball team.
The Seahawks completed their non-conference schedule over the weekend, leaving only the 18 games in its Coastal Athletic Association schedule to play.
With a host of new players to meld into the lineup, the Seahawks have overcome a couple of injuries to key players, had a host of strong midmajor wins, and a couple of frustrating losses.
Here’s what we’ve learned about UNCW heading into conference play on Thursday night at Trask Coliseum.
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What’s UNCW’s record going into conference play?
The Seahawks are 10-3 following their non-conference schedule, which ended Saturday with a victory over Spartanburg Methodist at Trask Coliseum.
UNCW has won seven of its last eight games. It played well in the first half of a loss at nationally ranked Kansas in mid-November, then took surprising losses to Colgate over Thanksgiving and at Howard after its exam break.
Between them, the Seahawks knocked off a host of teams around it in the analytics and metrics, including in-state foes Appalachian State, UNC Asheville and at East Carolina.
Donovan Newby stepping up
Graduate point guard Donovan Newby was the CAA’s co-player of the week for his game against UNC Asheville, when he went for 20 points, four assists, two rebounds and two steals.
He leads the team in minutes played, points, field goals and assists; his 16.8 points per game are best on the team by 5 points.
Behind him, it’s a deep, balanced bunch. Nine players, in all, average at least 17 minutes per game. Bo Montgomery, Khamari McGriff, Harlan Obioha and Nolan Hodge have all led the team in scoring at least once. Guard Bo Montgomery has led the team in rebounds three times and seven different players have had the game-high in assists.
If someone gets shut off or doesn’t have their A game, more often than not, someone else has stepped in to fill the void.
What does UNCW’s CAA schedule look like?
The Seahawks start conference play on Thursday, Jan. 2, with the marquee game of the night: At Trask Coliseum vs. longtime rival Towson.
The Tigers and Seahawks have had no love lost in recent years, playing a string of physical games in the regular season and conference tournament. The teams played in the regular-season finale a year ago – a UNCW win in Trask – but the Tigers got revenge in the CAA tournament quarterfinals their next game to end the Seahawks’ season.
The CAA plays 18 games in total, with nine at home and nine on the road.
After Towson on Thursday, the Seahawks get long-time rival Campbell at home Saturday.
How to watch UNCW basketball
UNCW has at least two more games scheduled to be on FOX Wilmington: Thursday vs. Towson and Thursday, Jan. 16, vs. Northeastern.
Three games are set for the CBS Sports Network: Jan. 20 vs. William & Mary at home; Feb. 8 at Drexel; and Feb. 13 vs. College of Charleston at home.
All other games can be streamed through FloSports.
For tickets to games at Trask Coliseum, go to UNCWSports.com and click “tickets”.
This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: UNCW basketball: What to know after non-conference ahead of CAA schedule
