Six Chants Reach Double Figures in Win Over Columbia International

CONWAY, S.C. - Redshirt freshman forwardEssam Mostafa collected a team-high 25 points to lead six players in double figures as Coastal Carolina ran away with a 113-56 victory over outmatched Columbia International Thursday night at the HTC Center. The 6′9″ Mostafa, who sat out most of the second half, also had a team-high 15 rebounds.

Other Coastal players in double figures were Ebrima Dibba with 16 and Deanthony Tipler with 15. DeVante’ Jones added 14, while Tyrik Dixon had 11 and DeShawn Thomas had 10. Coastal reached the 100 points with more than nine minutes remaining in the game, allowing head coach Cliff Ellis to empty his bench.

The win lifted Coastal to an early-season record of 2-0. Columbia International, 3-2, was led by junior forward Thomas Woods, who came off the bench to score 15 points, but the Rams played without three starters, including their leading scorer Corey Benson, who was out with a leg injury.

Mostafa, who hails from Cairo, Egypt, also had more than 20 points in the Chanticleers’ season opener, and again he was a solid figure inside. He hit on 11 of his 15 shots from close range, helping the Chants to hit on a torrid 44-69 overall from the field (64 percent). They also more than doubled-up the Rams on the boards, with a 46-20 rebounding advantage.

“We should have won this game convincingly, and we did just that,” said Ellis. “We got a lot of opportunities offensively. Mostafa had another strong game and he just overpowered their players inside.

Dibba also showed that he’s fully back after being out for 10 months (with a knee injury).” Dibba, a junior guard who missed 27 games last season, got his 16 points on 7-11 shooting and chipped in with five rebounds and team-highs of six steals and six assists. Dixon came off the bench again to get his points that included hitting 3-of-four 3-pointers. Jones, the team’s leading scorer at over 17 points a game last year, enjoyed another breather, as he played just 22 minutes and got 12 of his 14 points in the first half.

The Chants wasted no time in setting the pace. They used an early 26-4 run to take a commanding, 35-8 lead even before the midway point of the first half. Coastal added to its already insurmountable lead by closing the first half on a 23-6 run, to lead 77-31 at halftime.

Mostafa had 10 of his team’s first points and already had a double-double at the break, with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Dibba, Jones, and Tipler were also in double figures after 20 minutes. The Chants largest lead on the night came in the closing minutes when they led by 61 points, 104-43.

Coastal will continue its four-game home stand at 6 p.m. Monday against N.C. Central, before welcoming Greensboro College at 5 p.m. Dec. 12. Sun Belt Conference games will begin Jan. 1-2 with Coastal hosting Georgia State on back-to-back days.