Senior Clay Mounce netted a career-high 29 points and junior Noah Gurley added 18 as Furman knocked The Citadel from the ranks of the unbeaten with a 94-88 victory in Southern Conference action Wednesday afternoon at McAlister Field House in Charleston, S.C.
With the victory, Furman improved to 9-3 overall and maintained first place in the SoCon at 3-0. The Citadel dropped to 8-1 overall and 1-1 in league play.
The Paladins used runs of 11-2 and 12-2 in the first half to fashion a 48-41 lead at the break, built a 17-point second half lead and withstood several Citadel runs down the stretch to top the Bulldogs for the fifth straight time and ninth in the last 10 meetings between the schools.
Mounce, who was sidelined early with two fouls in the opening 2:45 of the game, hit 10-of12 shots, including 4-of-5 from three-point range to register a career high for the second straight outing. Gurley scored his 18 points on 9-of-21 shooting, while junior Mike Bothwell added 17 points, eight rebounds, five assists and four steals. Alex Hunter rounded out Furman’s double-digit scorers with 10 points to go with five boards, four assists and four steals.
Bothwell capped a 9-0 Furman run with five straight points to put the Paladins in front 76-59 with 8:38 to go. The Citadel answered with seven straight points before a Mounce triple and Bothwell layup upped the lead back to 15 points. The Bulldogs followed with a 10-0 run to trim the Paladin lead to 81-76 with under five minutes to play.
The Citadel trailed 85-80 with 3:21 to go, but Mounce scored three points over Furman’s next two possessions and Bothwell picked up a steal and a layup with 2:08 to extend the margin to 90-80. The Bulldogs clawed back within five points before Jalen Slawson and Bothwell combined to make good on 4-of-4 trips to the foul line in the final 30 seconds to secure the victory.
Furman shot 51.4% from the field and totaled 21 assists on 37 made baskets. The Paladins outscored the Bulldogs 58-32 in the paint and netted 30 points off of 20 Citadel turnovers.
Kaiden Rice paced five Bulldogs in double figures with 20 points on 6-of-12 shooting from three and Hayden Brown added 18 points and a game-high 12 rebounds. The Citadel shot 46.25 from the field and connected on 12-of-34 three-point attempts and 16-of-20 trips to the foul line.
Furman returns home to host ETSU at Timmons Arena at 4 p.m. on Saturday in a game that will be televised live on ESPNU. Fans can listen to the “Voice of the Paladins”, Dan Scott, deliver the play-by-play call of both games on ESPN Upstate at 97.7 FM/1330 AM in Greenville, 97.1 FM/ 950 AM in Spartanburg, and thru the Radio.com app.
Furman Now Scheduled To Host Three “Weekends at the Well” In 2021
Furman basketball returns to downtown Greenville for the first of three “Weekends at the Well” when it hosts the Chattanooga Mocs on January 30. Furman and Wofford will stage a rematch of last season’s thrilling showdown at the Well on February 6, before the Paladins entertain Western Carolina at the Well on February 13. Get your tickets now for all three “Weekends at the Well”!
