Liberty falls to 0-2 at the start conference play after losing to Charleston Southern this afternoon, here’s our rapid reactions:

  1. It seems like this will become a recurring theme this year as the Flames did not have enough consistent offense against the Buccaneers. Lovell Cabbil and Ryan Kemrite, Liberty’s 2nd and 3rd leading scorers this season, combined to shoot 2/15 from the field and finished with just 7 points. A.C. Reid, who set a new career-high with 18 points in the first half, only had 2 points in the 2nd half.
  2. Speaking of Reid, he broke out of what had been a season long shooting slump in the first half as he made 5 of his 8 3-point attempts in the opening 20 minutes. Reid had 18 points at halftime, but finished the game with 20 points after shooting 0-for-5 in the 2nd half. He also pulled down 8 rebounds.
  3. Charleston Southern decided they would double Evan Maxwell every time he touched the ball, and it caused Liberty’s big man some problems, especially in the first half. Maxwell had 6 turnovers on the afternoon. It’s another wrinkle he will have to learn to deal with as he continues to develop. Maxwell did finish with 14 points and 8 rebounds while shooting 7/9 from the field.
  4. As poor as Liberty’s offense looks at times this season, its defense will sustain and keep the team in the game. Once the team is able to find someone to rely on for consistent offense, the Flames can turn some of these close losses into close wins.
  5. Cabbil continues to struggle with turnovers, finishing the game with 4.
  6. Anytime a team shoots 12/28 from 3-point range, as the Bucs did, they will be very difficult to beat. Liberty was just 5/22 from 3.
  7. Liberty dominated CSU in points in the paint, outscoring the Buccaneers 40-10.
  8. The Flames return to action on Tuesday at Furman.