Asheville, NC (Sports Network) - De'Mon Brooks scored 24 points and top-seeded Davidson will dance again after it defended its Southern Conference Tournament title against College of Charleston, 74-55, in the championship game on Monday.
Brooks shot 9-for-14 from the field to help the Wildcats (26-7) earn an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive year, and they will carry the nation's longest active winning streak at 17 games into their first contest.
"Knowing the hard work pays off after countless hours in the gym takes you a long way," Brooks said. "We struggled and had some ups and downs this season but we all came together like a family. That's what it's all about."
JP Kuhlman chipped in with 14 points on 6-for-7 shooting and Jake Cohen added 12 points and three blocks in the wire-to-wire victory for Davidson.
The Cougars (24-10) shot just 29.8 percent for the contest and were never able to break through despite hanging around for the first 31 minutes of play.
"I have to give Davidson credit, they're a really good team and can hurt you in so many ways," College of Charleston head coach Doug Wojcik said.
Andrew Lawrence finished with 19 points and Adjehi Baru scored 11 for College of Charleston, which hasn't reached the NCAA Tournament since 1999.
Davidson received a basket each from Cohen, Kuhlman and Brooks to open up a 7-0 lead early and it held an advantage of at least that distance for most of the game.
A score from Kuhlman with just under eight minutes showing in the first half expanded the Wildcats' edge to 12 and they held a 35-26 lead at the break.
The Cougars provided some resistance coming out of the locker room as a 6-0 spurt had them within 38-32 on a jumper from Baru, but Kuhlman quelled the short run with his sixth basket of the game.
A three-point play from Lawrence at the 10:57 mark kept the College of Charleston within eight, but things would quickly spiral from there as they would not make another field goal for the rest of the game.
The Wildcats quickly took control as they scored 12 points to the Cougars' two free throws over the next 6 1/2 minutes to build a 68-50 lead and all but claim victory.
Game Notes
Nik Cochran finished with 10 points, four rebounds and four assists for Davidson ... The Wildcats shot 54.9 percent from the field and outscored the Cougars 42-24 inside the paint ... The College of Charleston only managed two assists as a team ... Brooks also hauled in eight rebounds.
