Did coach Cliff Ellis just complete his best coaching job ever? There's some credence to that thought. He took a team with one legitimate scoring threat and led it to 13 victories.

The Chanticleers nearly pulled a first-round Big South tournament upset of High Point on the road, but fell in the final minute when Big South player of the year Arizona Reid rebounded his own miss with 11 seconds left and scored to put High Point ahead.

In a year full of adversity, Ellis -- the former Clemson and Auburn coach -- found a way to keep the Chanticleers competitive. They were an easy out for no one, swept league preseason favorite High Point and beat perennial league power Winthrop.

Despite losing forwards Joseph Harris and Everage Richardson to injury and guard Joshua Mack, who left the team in December, Coastal managed to stay competitive all season.

Now Ellis, who wasn't hired until midway through last summer, will have a full year to recruit and get his sort of players into place. Ellis is continuing to fight for a new facility for the Chanticleers, who play in the tiny on-campus Kimbel Arena. As former coach Buzz Peterson found out, getting the funding and support from the community for the arena project has been a struggle.

But at the very least, Ellis has the Coastal program moving in the right direction.

Copyright (C) 2008 The Sports Xchange. All Rights Reserved.