The Furman Paladins traveled down to Charleston on Wednesday, Jan. 31 to avenge last year’s loss at The Citadel. Though the Bulldogs sat at a mere 1-7 in SoCon play, they gave the Paladins all they could handle early on. Guard Elijah Morgan created space and knocked down three point shots multiple times in the first half to give The Citadel a double-digit lead.
The Dins couldn’t get their jumpshots to fall at a high rate. The Citadel, on the other hand, drew fouls and got to the free throw line, which often killed Furman’s momentum. Finding themselves down as many as 18 with a minute to go in the first half, junior forward Alex Williams and junior guard JP Pegues both hit contested jumpers to cut the lead to 42-30.
In the second half, the Dins found their rhythm on offense. They distributed the ball well and used their quickness to exploit a slow rotating Citadel defense. Junior guard PJay Smith came alive as well by hitting three of his four threes in this half, the last one tying the game up at 56 apiece.
The lead was then traded back and forth well into the final three minutes of regulation. With 1 minute and 32 seconds left, forward Quentin Millora-Brown made a layup to put The Citadel up 72-69. Furman had three different opportunities on offense to tie the lead but were unable to convert. With The Citadel missing yet another front end of a one and one, it looked like Furman had their fourth and final opportunity to send the game to overtime.
As Furman fans held their breath, Pegues took the ball up the court and lunged into a three-pointer. His body hung in the air for a split second before he released what would end up being the game-tying shot. The arena went dead silent except the Furman bench, from which a celebration echoed around McAlister Field House. The Citadel was left stunned, and overtime loomed ahead.
Five more minutes of basketball seemed to be the last thing The Citadel had expected as Furman took the lead with 2 minutes and 48 seconds left in overtime and never gave it back. The Dins hit key free throws, but encountered a scare when The Citadel shrunk the lead to three and got a steal. The Citadel had three opportunities to tie the game up after securing multiple offensive rebounds, but couldn’t connect, and the Dins emerged victorious.
ESPN gave The Citadel a 93-percent win probability with seven seconds left in the game, but Pegues proved he could defy the odds once again. Furman climbs to (12-10, 6-3 SoCon) and sits at fourth in the standings. Next on the docket is a date with East Tennessee State University on Saturday, Feb. 10 at 6 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.
