By MONTE DUTTON

Already, it’s quite a change.

Led by Marquis Barnett with 20 points, Presbyterian defeated The Citadel, 71-64, in front of a lively Templeton Center crowd of 514 on Monday night. Starting out 3-0 after going 5-27 last season has that effect on a basketball program.

In its way, downing the Bulldogs was as significant as shocking Vanderbilt last week. The 68-62 upset in Nashville was an ambush. Prevailing over The Citadel was the kind of physical, toe-to-toe battle that the Blue Hose must win with regularity. Vandy was trick-or-treat. The Citadel was meat and potatoes.

Presbyterian (3-0) defeated its second Division I opponent after defeating three – VMI, Elon and Campbell – all last season. The Blue Hose won their only Big South game on Dec. 29, 2022, then lost all 18 games in the current year until this season began with three straight victories.

“Winning cures all losses for me,” said Barnett. “As long as I win, I can forget about the past. I’m gonna use last season as a fuel, you know? It’s just beautiful with all our other guys sticking it out and staying here through all the hard times.”

It’s the best possible form of amnesia.

“We’ve got guys now who know how to win, guys with more experience who aren’t afraid of adversity. … Basketball is a game of runs. Once you go through the downs, you’ve got to be confident in each other,” Barnett added.

The Citadel (0-3) fell in its first two games by respectable margins to North Carolina State (72-59) and Boston College (75-71) while PC was shocking most of the world at Vandy and taking the obligatory 100-58 gimme over Columbia International.

In essence, the difference in the hardfought game was shooting. Free throws were comparable. Rebounding was tight (Citadel, 39-38), as were turnovers (PC, 13-11) and steals (Citadel, 5-3), but the Blue Hose shot .431 (25/58) to the Bulldogs’ .310 (18/58). The Citadel couldn’t survive with a three-point percentage of .182 (4/22). Presbyterian didn’t sparkle, also hitting four but trying eight fewer (.286).

The lead changed hands seven times and was tied the same number. Presbyterian led, 35-31, at halftime. The Citadel never led in the second half, though the score was tied twice, at 40-40 (17:10) and 47-47 (12:29). The Bulldogs held the lead for 12:54 of the first half.

Four PC players scored in double figures, with Crosby James (14), Kaleb Scott (11) and Samage Teel (10) joining Barnett. Teel distributed five assists, Kobe Stewart four, and Barnett  led the Blue Hose with seven rebounds.

A.J. Smith led the Bulldogs with 16 points, and Madison Durr added 15. The game’s leading rebounder was The Citadel’s Quentin Millora-Brown with 11. Winston Hill, who transferred to The Citadel from PC after last season, scored nine.

Trevon Reddish-Rhone of PC and The Citadel’s Durr fouled out.

“I just focused on the foxhole guys with me – Marquis (Barnett), Kobe Stewart, Trayvon (Reddish-Rhone), because I knew I could go get them help, me and my staff,” head coach Quenton Ferrell said.

Teel transferred in from Winston-Salem State, Jamahri Harvey from UNC Wilmington, Jonah Pierce from Francis Marion and Kaleb Scott from Georgia State. All are juniors.

Barnett cited a summertime trip to Italy.

“It gave us time to spend with one another,” he said. “We were in another country and really appreciative of the opportunity Coach Q presented us. … It was a great time.

“I think the time we spent with one another was very important to our success now.”

Next up? The Blue Hose take on North Florida in the first round of the First Coast Classic on Nov. 16 in Jacksonville, Fla., followed by games against Maine and Northwestern (La.) State. The next home game pits the Blue Hose against Tennessee Tech on Nov. 27.

Take a look at the stats here.

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