COLUMBUS – After picking up their first loss of the season at Francis Marion (S.C.) on Wednesday night, Columbus State Men's Basketball looks to bounce back with a pair of contests this weekend at the Clayton State Classic.
 
The Cougars (2-1) will begin play on Friday night at 5 p.m. ET against Miles (Ala.) and will follow with a 1 p.m. ET matchup against Edward Waters (Fla.) on Saturday. CSU will tip-off on the Mason Barfield Court in "The Loch" on the campus of Clayton State University in Morrow, Ga.
 
Scouting Miles
 
Miles is just 1-0 this season with a 68-47 win over Talladega (Ala.) under their belts. The Golden Bears were led by Nash Vernon who dropped 19 points while shooting for 87.5% (7-of-8) from the field and 83.3% (5-of-6) from three.
 
The duo of Alvin Miles and Elijah Horton tallied double-digit points as well, scoring 12 and 11 points, respectively. Miles dished out a team-leading six assists and tallied three steals on the defensive end.
 
Miles is the leading returner from a season ago, producing 445 points in the 2023-24 campaign. The Golden Bears also return forward Corey Trotter who was second in scoring and the team leader in rebounds, blocks, and steals.
 
The Golden Bears are led by Fred Watson who has been at the helm since the 2018-19 season. Watson has produced winning seasons of .700 or greater during his tenure as Miles' head coach.
 
Scouting Edward Waters
 
Edward Waters is 3-0 this season and will face Clayton State at 7:30 p.m. ET on Friday. Offensively, Ja'Kobe Williams leads the Tigers with an average of 15.7 points per contest while shooting for 35.6% from the field and 85.7% from the foul line.
 
The Tigers are coming off a narrow 78-74 victory against Voorhees (S.C.) on Wednesday night. EWU returns 13 players from last season's squad which included eight of the team's top 10 scorers.
 
Edward Waters is led by head coach Cabral who is in his second season at the helm. He went 12-18 last season and 9-12 in SIAC play.
 
Previewing the Cougars
 
Columbus State is coming off an 85-76 loss to Francis Marion on Wednesday and are looking to bounce back this weekend. Through three games, Jehloni James has been the leading points producer for CSU with an average of 19.7 points per contest.
 
Following James is Jarrett Adderton with 18.7 points per game and Rakeim Gary with 12.0 points per game. James and Kordell Brown lead the rebounding efforts with 7.7 boards per contest. Gary has dished out a total of 16 assists for an average of 5.3 per game while Roman Son has notched 12 assists for an average of 4.0 per game.
 
Columbus State is 4-0 versus Miles with the last meeting being in the 2022-23 season. As for the Edward Waters matchup, CSU has only met the Tigers once, winning 85-62 last season in Columbus, Ga.
 
How to Follow Along
 
Fans can follow along for free on the PBC Sports Network and can follow the live stats as well. Tickets are available for those traveling and are encouraged to purchase in advance to showing up to the gate.