Coastal Carolina 6-foot-7 senior forward Chris Gradnigo scored 23 points and hauled down eight rebounds to lead the Chanticleers to a 104-61 victory over the division III Methodist Monarchs at Kimbel Arena in Conway, South Carolina on Saturday night.
Methodist, from Fayetteville, North Carolina, led 17-14 eight minutes into the game. But Gradnigo hit a jumper followed by a dunk in a span of 22 seconds to give CCU the lead for good. The Chanticleers went on a 14-point run and cruised the rest of the way.
The Chanticleers hit 56.7 percent from the field and outrebounded the Monarchs 47-27. Anthony Raffa scored 17 points for Coastal and had his first college dunk in the second half of the blowout victory. Kierre Greenwood had 14 points and Dexter Moore added a dozen.
Coastal Carolina improved to 2-0 on the season. The Chanticleers will host the LSU Tigers (1-0) on Tuesday, November 15 at 7 p.m. at Kimbel Arena in Conway.
