# 1997–98 Charleston Cougars men's basketball team

The 1997–98 College of Charleston Cougars men's basketball team represented the College of Charleston in the 1997–98 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Cougars, led by 19th-year head coach John Kresse, played their home games at F. Mitchell Johnson Arena in Charleston, South Carolina as members of the Trans America Athletic Conference.
After finishing atop the conference regular season standings (14–2), the Cougars also won the 1998 TAAC tournament to earn an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as No. 14 seed in the Midwest region. College of Charleston was beaten in the opening round by eventual Final Four participant Stanford, 67–57. The team finished with an overall record of 24–6.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| Nov 15, 1997* | | Tennessee Wesleyan | W 83–44 | 1–0 | F. Mitchell Johnson Center (3,277) Charleston, South Carolina |
| Nov 19, 1997* | | Charleston Southern | W 91–64 | 2–0 | F. Mitchell Johnson Center (5,121) Charleston, South Carolina |
| Nov 25, 1997* | | at George Mason | W 68–56 | 3–0 | Patriot Center (2,411) Fairfax, Virginia |
| Dec 2, 1997* | | at UMass | L 40–52 | 3–1 | Mullins Center (7,536) Amherst, Massachusetts |
| Dec 6, 1997* | | The Citadel | W 56–44 | 4–1 | F. Mitchell Johnson Center (3,516) Charleston, South Carolina |
| Dec 20, 1997* | | Guilford | W 71–47 | 5–1 | F. Mitchell Johnson Center (2,743) Charleston, South Carolina |
| Dec 28, 1997* | | Rider Franklin Life Classic | L 58–65 | 5–2 | F. Mitchell Johnson Center (2,803) Charleston, South Carolina |
| Dec 29, 1997* | | Columbia Franklin Life Classic | W 77–55 | 6–2 | F. Mitchell Johnson Center (2,251) Charleston, South Carolina |
| Jan 3, 1998 | | at Centenary | W 64–51 | 7–2 (1–0) | Gold Dome (1,050) Shreveport, Louisiana |
| Jan 5, 1998 | | Troy | W 92–42 | 8–2 (2–0) | F. Mitchell Johnson Center (2,762) Charleston, South Carolina |
| Jan 8, 1998 | | at Samford | W 50–49 | 9–2 (3–0) | Seibert Hall (1,466) Homewood, Alabama |
| Jan 10, 1998 | | at Jacksonville State | W 88–63 | 10–2 (4–0) | Pete Mathews Coliseum (1,022) Jacksonville, Alabama |
| Jan 12, 1998* | | at The Citadel | L 63–64 | 10–3 | McAlister Field House (5,236) Charleston, South Carolina |
| Jan 15, 1998 | | Florida International | W 81–62 | 11–3 (5–0) | F. Mitchell Johnson Center (3,495) Charleston, South Carolina |
| Jan 17, 1998 | | Florida Atlantic | W 74–56 | 12–3 (6–0) | F. Mitchell Johnson Center (3,207) Charleston, South Carolina |
| Jan 22, 1998 | | at Central Florida | W 65–47 | 13–3 (7–0) | UCF Arena (1,439) Orlando, Florida |
| Jan 24, 1998 | | at Stetson | W 67–63 | 14–3 (8–0) | Edmunds Center (3,622) DeLand, Florida |
| Jan 29, 1998 | | Campbell | W 65–39 | 15–3 (9–0) | F. Mitchell Johnson Center (3,392) Charleston, South Carolina |
| Jan 31, 1998 | | Mercer | W 67–47 | 16–3 (10–0) | F. Mitchell Johnson Center (3,437) Charleston, South Carolina |
| Feb 2, 1998 | | Georgia State | W 79–53 | 17–3 (11–0) | F. Mitchell Johnson Center (3,201) Charleston, South Carolina |
| Feb 7, 1998 | | at Campbell | W 62–49 | 18–3 (12–0) | Carter Gymnasium (864) Buies Creek, North Carolina |
| Feb 12, 1998 | | at Florida Atlantic | W 72–49 | 19–3 (13–0) | FAU Arena (2,839) Boca Raton, Florida |
| Feb 14, 1998 | | at Florida International | L 67–74 | 19–4 (13–1) | Golden Panther Arena (1,525) Westchester, Florida |
| Feb 16, 1998* | | Wofford | W 79–45 | 20–4 | F. Mitchell Johnson Center (3,037) Charleston, South Carolina |
| Feb 19, 1998 | | Stetson | W 67–53 | 21–4 (14–1) | F. Mitchell Johnson Arena (2,971) Charleston, South Carolina |
| Feb 21, 1998 | | Central Florida | L 68–70 $^{OT}$ | 21–5 (14–2) | F. Mitchell Johnson Arena (3,417) Charleston, South Carolina |
| TAAC tournament ||||||
| Feb 26, 1998* | (1) | (8) Campbell Quarterfinals | W 78–64 | 22–5 | F. Mitchell Johnson Arena (3,249) Charleston, South Carolina |
| Feb 27, 1998* | (1) | (5) Central Florida Semifinals | W 81–66 | 23–5 | F. Mitchell Johnson Arena (3,641) Charleston, South Carolina |
| Feb 28, 1998* | (1) | (2) Florida International Championship Game | W 72–63 | 24–5 | F. Mitchell Johnson Arena (3,371) Charleston, South Carolina |
| NCAA Tournament ||||||
| Mar 13, 1998* CBS | (14 MW) | (3 MW) No. 10 Stanford First round | L 57–67 | 24–6 | United Center (21,158) Chicago, Illinois |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. MW=Midwest. All times are in Eastern. ||||||
Source

## Awards and honors

* Sedric Webber – TAAC co-Player of the Year
* John Kresse – TAAC Coach of the Year