On Wednesday, Feb. 4, Furman (7-6 SoCon, 16-10 overall) lost 75-71 in overtime while visiting ETSU (11-2 SoCon). The Paladins had a 12-point lead before entering halftime, but the Buccaneers closed the gap around the six-minute remaining mark in the second half. Furman had the ball with 15 seconds left after a timeout, but ETSU’s defense didn’t budge and forced overtime. ETSU would then jump ahead with a multi-score lead that they didn’t relinquish until time ran out for Furman to take the lead, and ETSU proceeded to convert the game with their free throw shooting.
This game saw the continuation of second half troubles for Furman in Southern Conference play. Of the 11 conference games played before facing ETSU, Furman had only been outscored a single time in the first half, with the overall first half point differential being +66.
Nonetheless, the Paladins have converted the majority of their leads and have a winning SoCon record, but a series of losses has held them back in the standings. The culprit often is turnovers, foul trouble, and loss of momentum.
This game was no exception, with Furman losing the ball 21 times compared to ETSU’s nine and giving up 16 points from free throws while scoring only six. Second half play had also been compromised by a roster that continued to not be fully healthy, notably with senior forward Asa Thomas not returning for this matchup.
The game was not all bad news for the Dins. Furman out-rebounded the highly physical Buccaneers 36-29. Senior forward Charles Johnston made three 3PT shots, and freshman guard Alex Wilkins and senior forward Cooper Bowser scored 19 and 18 points respectively.
In the following game, Furman had hoped to repeat a dominant win against UNCG (7-6 SoCon) at home on Feb 8. However, during this matchup, both teams attempted 19 three-point shots, and UNCG made 10 while Furman made only five, leading UNCG to a 67-64 victory despite a strong performance from Cooper Bowser who scored 20 points.
The Paladins then entered Macon, GA on Feb. 11 to rematch Mercer (8-5 SoCon), whom they had beaten 74-72 at home previously. In a game where both offenses were slow to start, Mercer would go on to win 69-64, extending Furman’s losing streak to three games.
Furman maintained a thin lead for most of the game, until a 14-7 scoring run by Mercer with under three minutes remaining in the second half put Furman behind. Furman brought it back to within one score, but several missed three-point attempts forced the team to settle for a lay-up, leaving them trailing by one point with seconds on the clock. Mercer converted both free-throw attempts after the first foul, Furman failed on another three, and then Mercer made their final two free-throws giving them a five point lead and the game.
While neither team shot above 40%, the difference was made in Mercer outrebounding Furman 44-37 and shooting 86% in free-throw attempts, yielding them 18 points while Furman’s ever-persistent free-throw woes continued with a 62% performance for just eight points.
Johnston continued a trend of shooting success with three 3-point shots made and freshman forward Cole Bowser made two of three. Scoring in the largely defensive game was spread mostly equally between Johnston, Bowser, Thomas, and senior guard Tom House.
Following these losses, the chances of a first place finish in regular season conference play are slim with Furman essentially needing to win all of their remaining five games while multiple other top teams must lose most of theirs.
More importantly, Furman seeks to finish in the top six to receive a bye in the first round of the tournament. Currently, Furman sits in a three-way tie at fourth place, with three other teams outside the top six but within striking distance. While all games in conference play are important, these five remaining matchups for Furman are all critical in determining tournament seeding in a highly competitive year.
Looking forward, the team must make adjustments to finish the regular season strong and prepare for the postseason. Furman next plays at VMI (1-12 SoCon) on Feb. 14, whom the Paladins last beat 69-48.
