All five of Saturday's league games were decided by 10 points or less, and there were some big surprises in store for the first Saturday of league play. The most notable of those were WCU's win at Furman, as well as the UNCG Spartans moving to 2-0 in league play after posting an 89-82 home win over Samford.
Reigning SoCon Tournament champion Wofford continued its strong start to SoCon play by improving to 2-0 in league action with a 95-86 win on the road at The Citadel.
Meanwhile, reigning SoCon regular-season and NIT Champion Chattanooga saw its struggles continue in Lexington, VA, as the VMI Keydets were able to hold off a furious Mocs rally to come up with a 79-71 home win.
ETSU 77, Mercer 71
JOHNSON CITY, TENN--In a game that most around the league had their eyes trained on Saturday, it was East Tennessee State, which was buoyed by a 14-0 run late in the second half, that propelled the Bucs to their second SoCon win of the young season, holding off a tough Bears club, 77-71, before a crowd of 3,122 at Freedom Hall for the first game of 2026.
The win would see the Bucs improve to 10-5 overall and 2-0 in league play, while Mercer falls to 8-7 overall and 0-2 in SoCon action.
Brian Taylor II matched his season-high of 21 points to lead the Bucs' scoring efforts, while also tying a career-high for made free throws, as he connected on 10-of-11 attempts in the contest. He also ended the contest by leading the Bucs on the backboards, as he snagged eight rebounds in the win.
The Bucs found themselves trailing the contest, 60-58, with just under seven minutes remaining in the game, however, five-straight points in a span of 45 seconds from guard Jaylen Smith gave the Bucs a quick 63-60 lead, as it would mark the 10th and final lead change of the contest.
From there, it would be another Smith free throw, which was then followed by a corner three from Taylor and gave the Bucs the largest lead by either team in the game to that point, at 68-60, with 4:34 remaining. Blake Barkley's layup with just over three minutes to play and his putback off his own miss a little over a minute later extended the Bucs' lead out to their largest of the afternoon, at 12 points, giving the Bucs the momentum they needed to push them over the finish line.
In the opening minutes of the second half, the intensity ratcheted up a bit on both sides in the high-stakes, early SoCon showdown, as the Bears and Bucs combined for 22 points during a hectic five-minute span, which saw the nine of ETSU's 11 points scored during the span coming at either the charity stripe or in the paint.
That intensity and offensive aggression by ETSU would show in the way of seeing ETSU enjoy a 10-free throw advantage in the contest, as ETSU blistered the nets at an 85.2% (23-of-27) success rate at the charity stripe, while the Bears finished the afternoon by connecting on 70.6% (12-of-17) from the foul line.
ETSU finished the contest connecting on 42.1% (24-of-57) from the field, which included a 31.6% (6-of-19) effort from three-point land.
Mercer finished the contest connecting at a slightly higher shooting clip, finishing the day with a 43.1% (25-of-58) clip, including a 32.1% (9-of-28) effort from three-point range.
The Bucs finished with advantages in the following categories: points in the paint (30-26), bench points (19-10), points from turnovers (22-16), free throw made (23-12), free throw attempts (27-17), second-chance points (18-6) and total rebounds (40-31). Mercer held advantages in total assists (11-8) and fast-break points (16-7).
Three Bucs would end up joining Taylor in double figures in the game, as Barkley added 19 points to go with four rebounds, while Cam Morris III added 12, and Smith matched his teammate with 12 off the bench.
Mercer would finish the game with three finding their way into double figures for the Bears, led by Brady Shoulders' career-high 21 points, as the talented redshirt sophomore wing connected on 7-of-11 shots from the field, which included a 4-for-6 effort from three-point range.
Guards Baraka Okojie and Zaire Williams rounded out the Bears players in double figures, adding 15 and 13 points, respectively. For Okojie, it was his 14th double-figures scoring performance in 14 games for the Bears this season.
UNCG 89, Samford 82
GREENSBORO, N.C.--For a team that struggled so much during the non-conference, UNC Greensboro is a team that, through the first two SoCon games of the season, sure hasn't looked like it.
Four Spartans found their way into double figures, as UNCG moved to 2-0 in 2026 with an 89-82 win over Samford Saturday afternoon at Bodford Arena. With the win, UNCG improved to 6-9 overall and 2-0 in league play, while the Bulldogs fell to 8-7 overall and 1-1 overall in league action. It marks the fourth-straight year UNCG has started SoCon play with a 2-0 mark.
UNCG's scoring efforts were led by Justin Neely, who turned in another strong performance, contributing 22 points and 14 rebounds for his eighth double-double of the season. Neely's eight double-doubles leads the Southern Conference this season. He finished the contest knocking down 6-of-15 shots from the field, which included going 2-for-3 from long range in the contest, as well as 8-for-10 from the charity stripe.
Neely was joined in double figures by Danish guard Noah Norgaard, who finished with 17 points, while guards Donald Whitehead Jr. and KJ Younger finished with 15 points apiece in the win.
Those performances helped off-set another strong performance from one of the league's most dynamic guard-post duos, in Jadin Booth and Dylan Faulkner, who combined to go for 51 points in the setback for the Bulldogs, with Booth leading the way with 26 points, while Faulkner added 25. The only other Samford player to reach double figures in scoring in the game was point guard Keaton Norris, who added 14.
Booth finished the contest by connecting 8-of-21 shots from the field, while going 6-for-16 from long-range. He did finish the afternoon a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line. Booth also added four assists and three rebounds to the Bulldogs' cause.
With UNCG leading 22-11 following a Donald Whitehead Jr. jumper with just under 13 minutes remaining in the half, the Bulldogs put together a 16-4 run to close the deficit to a single point, at 27-26, following a pair of Faulkner freebees with 8:25 left in the half. The Spartans would close the half on a 16-9 run of their own, however, taking an eight-point, 43-35, lead into the halftime locker room.
In the second half, the Spartans would surge out of the locker room on a 12-5 run, using a pair of free throws to take a 55-40 lead with 16:56 remaining. Booth, who scored 21 of his 26 points in the second half, helped the Bulldogs battle their way back into the game thanks to Booth and cut the Spartans' lead to just five with his fifth triple of the game, making it an 84-79 game with just under two minutes remaining.
However, shortly thereafter, Neely would draw contact from Booth, which resulted his fifth foul and disqualification for the remainder of the game. Neely cooly stroked home a pair of free throws and the Spartans defense held the Bulldogs out from getting the score any closer, holding on for an 89-82 SoCon win.
VMI 79, Chattanooga 71
LEXINGTON, VA--VMI held a double-digit advantage for most of the afternoon, however, had to hold off a hard-charging rally from the defending SoCon regular-season champions to hold on for a 79-71 win.
For head coach Andrew Wilson, it was his first win over Chattanooga since taking over as coach of the Keydets in the spring of 2022. Likewise, it was also Chattanooga head coach Dan Earl's first loss to his former employer since taking over as the Chattanooga head coach in the spring of 2022. In fact, the last time that VMI tasted victory over the Mocs was Feb. 19, 2022, as the Keydets held off Chattanooga for an 80-75 win in the Scenic City on that occasion.
The win by the Keydets saw them improve to 6-9 overall and evened their SoCon mark to 1-1, while the Mocs fell to 6-9 overall and 0-2 in league action.
The Keydets took command of the game in the early stages and never trailed at any point during the contest, taking a 39-23 lead into the halftime locker room. VMI's 10-0 run just before the half allowed the Red and Gold to build their lead to double digits, and a little less than seven minutes into the second half, the Keydets had fattened their lead to as much as 19, at 51-32, following one of TJ Johnson's four three-pointers in the contest.
From that point, however, the Mocs would make things very interesting, using an 18-2 run to get back into the game, cutting the VMI lead to just three, at 53-50, following a jumper by Teddy Washington Jr. at the 8:35 mark of the second half. VMI would keep just enough distance on the scoreboard, however, with some timely buckets over the next five minutes and change until Billy Smith converted a layup in traffic with 3:07 remaining, trimming VMI's lead back to three points, at 66-63.
But VMI continued to have all the answers, including connecting a pair of shot-clock beating triples, as well as showing why the Keydets are the top free throw shooting team in the league, knocking down 8-of-10 free throws down the stretch in the final minutes to hold on for a 79-71 win.
VMI ended up being led by four players in double figures, and it would be point guard Tan Yildizoglu that would pace the scoring efforts for the hometown team, as he posted 22 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the field, including going 4-for-8 from three-point range and 4-for-9 from the line en route to another big night scoring the basketball. He also finished the game by handing out six assists and added a steal, and his 22 points also ended up representing a career-high for the native of Istanbul, Turkey.
Helping supplement the junior guard's scoring efforts were Johnson, who entered the game as the SoCon's leading scorer and finished up with another solid performance, posting 17 points, including matching Yildizoglu's four triples with four of his own. In fact, both Johnson and Yildizoglu helped fuel the SoCon's most prolific perimeter shooting team by combining to go 8-of-17 from deep (47.0%).
Alexander Daushvili and Linus Holmstrom rounded out the double figure scorers for the Keydets, with 14 and 12 points, respectively. For Daushvili, his 14 points matched his career high in what was just his third outing this season for the Keydets. The true freshman has also suited up in games against Radford and Samford previously, with his 14 against the Mocs matching the 14 he recorded in his debut for VMI, as he posted 14 back on Dec. 21 vs. Radford. Daushvili just missed his first-career double-double, as he contributed nine boards in the contest. Holmstrom rounded out the Keydets in double figures with 12.
Chattanooga would finish the contest with a couple of players finishing in double figures in the game, led by Billy Smith's 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting from the field, including 1-of-6 from three-point land and 4-of-5 from the charity stripe. Point guard Tate Darner was the only other Chattanooga player in double figures, adding 16 off the bench.
VMI finished the contest connecting on 43.6% (24-of-55) from the field, including 30.3% (10-of-33) from three-point range. The Keydets were also a solid 72.4% (21-of-29) from the free throw line, narrowly edging the visiting Mocs, 21-20 at the line.
Chattanooga concluded the contest connecting on 40.7% (22-of-54) from the line, including 29.2% (7-of-24) from the charity stripe. The Mocs made up for those less than stellar shooting totals by finishing 83.3% (20-of-24) from the charity stripe.
Wofford 95, The Citadel 86
In what was an all-Palmetto State battle, reigning SoCon Tournament champion Wofford held off The Citadel, 96-86, in the highest scoring game of from Saturday's SoCon s slate, as Nils Machowski went for a SoCon season-high 37 points to lead the Terriers to the road win.
As a result of Machowski’s huge afternoon in Charleston, the Terriers improved to 10-5 overall and 2-0 in SoCon play, while The Citadel fell to 3-12 overall and 0-2 in league play, dropping its 36th straight game to NCAA Division I competition and 24th-straight loss to league foes, which includes a loss in last year’s SoCon Tournament.
Machowski finished his strong scoring effort by connecting on 12-of-17 from the field, including posting an 8-for-11 performance from three-point range and was also a perfect 5-for-5 from the charity stripe to finish with his 37-point outing.
The UCF transfer also added two rebounds, two steals and two assists in the win. It marked the second time the Bulldogs have allowed a big afternoon from a player from a Palmetto State institution to go off against them in McAlister Field House, as Charleston Southern’s Brycen Blaine to go for 42 points in a game earlier this season.
Joining Machowski’s stellar day for Wofford was Cayden Vasko, who added 20 points, five rebounds, five assists and one steal, while Kahmare Holmes and Jayden Tyler added 16 and 11 points, respectively, to finish out the double figure scorers for the Terriers in the win.
The Citadel finished with five in double figures in the setback, as Braxton Williams and Christian Moore led the way with 20 points apiece for the Bulldogs, while Carter Kingsbury and Logan Applegate added 16 and 13 points, respectively. Sola Adebisi once again was solid on both ends, adding a double-double with 11 points and 11 boards in the setback.
The game would end up being a shootout from the outset, as both teams shot the ball well over 50% from both the field and from long range, which was highlighted by a ridiculous 56.3% effort from three-point range from the Terriers, as Wofford connected on 18-of-32 shots from long-range in the contest. By comparison, the Terriers shot just 50.8% (31-of-61) from the field in the game.
Joining Machowski’s stellar day for Wofford was Cayden Vasko, who added 20 points, five rebounds, five assists and one steal, while Kahmare Holmes and Jayden Tyler added 16 and 11 points, respectively, to finish out the double figure scorers for the Terriers in the win.
The Citadel finished with five in double figures in the setback, as Braxton Williams and Christian Moore led the way with 20 points apiece for the Bulldogs, while Carter Kingsbury and Logan Applegate added 16 and 13 points, respectively. Sola Adebisi once again was solid on both ends, adding a double-double with 11 points and 11 boards in the setback.
The game would end up being a shootout from the outset, as both teams shot the ball well over 50% from both the field and from long range, which was highlighted by a ridiculous 56.3% effort from three-point range from the Terriers, as Wofford connected on 18-of-32 shots from long-range in the contest. By comparison, the Terriers shot just 50.8% (31-of-61) from the field in the game.
The Citadel also lit it up from the field and long-range, connecting on 53.6% (30-for-56) from the field and 50% (12-of-24) from three-point range. In keeping with that theme, both teams shot the ball well from the charity stripe as well, with Wofford finishing 87.5% (14-of-16) from the line, while the Bulldogs shot 75.0% (15-of-20) from the charity stripe. Both the Terriers and Bulldogs have come a long way from where they were shooting free throws a year ago, as the two teams were a combined 29-of-36 from the line in the game.
As for the game itself, the Terriers came out and played one of their best opening halves of basketball of the season and took a 30-20 lead on a Vasko layup with 5:55 remaining in the opening half. The Terriers would later increase the lead to as much as 14 on one of Machowski’s eight triples 47 seconds later after Vasko’s layup but ended up settling for what was a seven-point, 42-35, halftime lead.
Both teams would hit half-a-hundred in the second half, as Wofford would post 53 second-half points, while the Bulldogs finished with 51. It would be Vasko that would help the Bulldogs push the score to 16 points less than four minutes into the second half on a three, giving the Terriers a 56-40 lead and gave Wofford the opportunity to blow the game wide open. However, the Bulldogs kept the deficit from getting beyond 16 and a Dante Kearse layup with just over nine minutes remaining trimmed Wofford’s lead back inside double digits, at 73-64.
Three triples and a layup over a two-and-a-half-minute span inside the final five minutes would make things real interesting, as Braxton Williams followed The Citadel’s three-consecutive trifectas with a layup to get The Citadel to within three, at 86-83, with 2:03 remaining. The Bulldogs’ stellar offense in the late going was buoyed by an equally impressive effort on the defensive end of the floor, holding Wofford scoreless from the field for over two minutes, which in a game that saw defense at a premium on both ends, must have seemed like an eternity.
However, Wofford’s best defense, it could be argued, was played in moments of the game when it needed it the most, and with three-straight defensive stops after the Bulldogs had cut the margin to one possession helped Wofford fatten its cushion back to three possessions, as it pushed the lead to eight by using a mini 5-0 run following a layup by Kahmare Holmes, a Machowski tip-in, and a Holmes free throw, as Wofford took a 91-83 lead with just 43 seconds remaining. Wofford was able to hold off another serious challenge from The Citadel and was able to close out the game by making its final four charity shots from Holmes and Machowski to finish off an impressive nine-point road win and remain tied atop the league standings at 2-0 along with ETSU and UNCG.
Western Carolina 80, Furman 77
In what was the game of the day in the SoCon, Western Carolina held off Furman for an 80-77 overtime win over the Paladins before a packed house at Timmons Arena, putting an end to Furman's six-game winning streak in the process.
After finishing out the final month of 2025 unbeaten, the Paladins started 2026 by suffering its first loss of the calendar year in their first outing, ending a streak of six-straight wins, falling to 10-5 overall and 1-1 in league play. Western Carolina, meanwhile, improved to 5-8 overall and 1-1 league action, putting an end to four-game losing streak.
The last time a Western Carolina came to Greenville and Timmons Arena and came away with a victory was on Nov. 28, 2012, when the Catamounts were able to garner a 79-65 win at Timmons Arena.
It was the fourth time in the past seven meetings that the game has gone to overtime between the hardwood battle of Purple Supremacy, and also marked the eighth time in the 90-game series history that the game has needed an extra five minutes to be settled and it marked the first time the Catamounts garnered a victory in an overtime game against the Paladins since an 88-85 double-overtime win at Reid Gym on Feb. 20, 1984.
The most-recent overtime thriller between the two featured eight ties and 16 lead changes.
It was most apparent that the more physical team and the team that wanted the win more from the outset Saturday was Western Carolina. A 48-35 rebounding margin is revealing, and for Furman, it was the largest margin it has suffered on the backboards this season.
The Catamounts finished doubling up Furman in second-chance points, 18-9, for the game, which was the most decisive statistical advantage other than overall rebounds that the Catamounts held in Saturday's game, and it was arguably the most telling one.
The Catamounts were the aggressor, and it would lead them to assume as much as an 11-point advantage twice late in the opening half of play, and if not for beyond halfcourt heave from freshman phenom point guard Alex Wilkins, Furman would have headed to the locker room facing a double-digit deficit on its home floor.
Leading a balanced Catamount attack were Marcus Kell and Julien Soumaoro, who posted 16 points apiece to lead four players in double figures in the win. Kell came alive in the second half for the Purple and Gold, as he finished with 13 of his 16 coming in the latter 20 minutes and overtime. Last season, Kell totaled 29 points and eight rebounds in WCU's 84-75 overtime loss to the Paladins at Davis Fieldhouse on the campus of Bob Jones University.
Kell went just 1-of-5 from the field in the opening half of play, however, over the final 25 minutes of action, he connected on 6-of-9 shots from the field to finish 7-of-14 shots from the field, including a 2-for-3 effort from three-point range to finish off what turned out to be a stellar game after an opening half that saw the Fort Mill, S.C., native struggle to find an offensive rhythm.
Soumaoro, who gave the Paladins plenty of problems with his quickness, especially in being able to come away with 50-50 balls throughout the contest. He was a big part of why the Catamounts had 17 offensive rebounds in the game, and his eight rebounds (7-defensive, 1-offensive) led Western's efforts on the glass.
His ability to keep the ball alive so a teammate could come away with the ball was key. The former Gardner-Webb Bulldog and East Carolina Pirate finished the day with 16 on 6-of-13 shooting from the field and 2-for-6 from long-range. He also connected on both of his free throw attempts and added one assist.
Cord Stansberry finished with 15 points, and he was the Catamounts' most-prolific three-point shooter, connecting on 3-of-5 long-range efforts in the game.
Rounding out the double-figure scorers for the Catamounts in the contest was Tijdiane Dioumassi--a transfer from Southern University and native of Paris, France--recorded his second-straight game in double figures for the Catamounts, adding 12 points, which was just one off his season-high of 13 points he had in the previous outing, which was a 79-74 home loss to Wofford. Dioumassi also added six rebounds, four assists and one steal.
Furman would be paced by freshman point guard Alex Wilkins, who posted 24 points, including 18 in the second half and overtime, as he finished 11-of-20 from the field, including going 2-for-6 from three-point range. He also added six assists, four rebounds and a steal, while also recording his seventh 20+point scoring effort of the season, including his third in succession.
Wilkins would be joined in double figures by Charles Johnston, who added 14 points and six rebounds, and did most of his damage from long-range in the game, as he would finish 4-of-8 from downtown in the loss.
Ultimate "glue guy" Ben Vander Wal rounded out the double-figure scorers for the Paladins with 11 points, while adding eight rebounds, six assists and three steals in another outstanding performance from the senior wing.
Fellow senior Tom House just missed a double-figure scoring effort, as he finished with nine points on 3-of-8 shooting from long-range.
Western Carolina finished the game connecting on 44.1% (30-of-68) from the field and finished 50% (10-of-20) from three-point range.
Furman finished the game 44.6% (29-of-62) from the field and that included a 34.4% (11-of-32) effort from three-point range.
The Catamounts held advantages in points off turnovers (16-13), total rebounds (48-35), second-chance points (18-9) and bench scoring (17-11). The Paladins finished the game holding advantages in points in the paint (34-28), fast-break points (16-3) and total assists (18-13).
Both teams were without key players due to injury, with Furman being without Cooper Bowser, while Western Carolina was missing the presence of big man Vernon Collins.
Furman's free throw shooting woes continued, as the Paladins missed nine key charity shots in the contest, finishing just 8-of-17 from the charity stripe. Meanwhile, the Catamounts were 10-for-16 from the charity stripe, making two more shots in one less attempt. In conference games with little if any margin for error, it ended up being a costly one for the Paladins in Saturday's loss.
Furman won the tip-off, but an Alex Wilkins turnover gave the Catamounts a run-out the other way and a Julian Soumaoro three put WCU up 3-0 before Ben Vander Wal answered with a layup on the other end off a nice feed from Charles Johnston to make it a 3-2 game. Buckets by Asa Thomas and Alex Wilkins were sandwiched by a jumper from Cord Stansberry, as the Paladins took a 6-5 lead into the first media timeout of the game with 15:40 left in the opening half.
Both teams traded blows early, with two teams heading to their respective benches at the second media timeout tied at 14, with a pair of threes from Owen Ritger and Abijah Franklin and a layup off a loose ball by Eddrin Bronson, while Justin Johnson connected on a step-back three and layups by Julien Soumaoro and Abdulai Fanta Kabba highlighting the scoring for the Catamounts.
Western Carolina used a Tahlan Pettway three to assume its biggest lead of the opening half, at 23-18, as Stansberry and Pettway hit back-to-back threes and the Catamounts headed to the third media of the opening half with a 23-18 lead with 7:31 remaining in the opening 20 minutes of basketball.
A Soumaro three briefly extended the Catamount lead to 10, at 28-18, however, Ben Vander Wal took a no-look feed from Wilkins and converted a layup and was fouled by Terrence Smith creating a three-point play opportunity, as the two teams headed to the final media timeout with 3:55 left in the opening half. However, Vander Wal missed leaving the margin at eight and Johnson converted a layup on the other end to push it back to 10 at 30-20.
Five threes—three by Furman and two by Western Carolina—in the final 1:40 saw the Catamounts take a 38-30 lead to the locker room. After Kell made a three from right elbow, Furman would get a beyond midcourt heave from Wilkins as time expired that hit nothing but net, getting the Paladins to within eight at the break.
By the time the first media timeout of the second half, Furman had trimmed an eight point deficit to two, using a 8-2 run out of the halftime locker room, using 17-straight points spanning the end of the first half and the start of the second from Wilkins and Johnston to get the Paladins to within a bucket. Furman took its first lead on a running one-hander in the lane by Wilkins, making it a 44-42 game and the first lead since the Paladins led 11-7.
Both teams traded blows early, with two teams heading to their respective benches at the second media timeout tied at 14, with a pair of threes from Owen Ritger and Abijah Franklin and a layup off a loose ball by Eddrin Bronson, while Justin Johnson connected on a step-back three and layups by Julien Soumaoro and Abdulai Fanta Kabba highlighting the scoring for the Catamounts.
Western Carolina used a Tahlan Pettway three to assume its biggest lead of the opening half, at 23-18, as Stansberry and Pettway hit back-to-back threes and the Catamounts headed to the third media of the opening half with a 23-18 lead with 7:31 remaining in the opening 20 minutes of basketball.
A Soumaro three briefly extended the Catamount lead to 10, at 28-18, however, Ben Vander Wal took a no-look feed from Wilkins and converted a layup and was fouled by Terrence Smith creating a three-point play opportunity, as the two teams headed to the final media timeout with 3:55 left in the opening half. However, Vander Wal missed leaving the margin at eight and Johnson converted a layup on the other end to push it back to 10 at 30-20.
Five threes—three by Furman and two by Western Carolina—in the final 1:40 saw the Catamounts take a 38-30 lead to the locker room. After Kell made a three from right elbow, Furman would get a beyond midcourt heave from Wilkins as time expired that hit nothing but net, getting the Paladins to within eight at the break.
By the time the first media timeout of the second half, Furman had trimmed an eight point deficit to two, using a 8-2 run out of the halftime locker room, using 17-straight points spanning the end of the first half and the start of the second from Wilkins and Johnston to get the Paladins to within a bucket. Furman took its first lead on a running one-hander in the lane by Wilkins, making it a 44-42 game and the first lead since the Paladins led 11-7.
However, WCU hit back with five-straight points on a three by Johnson and a dunk by Kell to seemingly retake control of the game, as the Catamounts would eventually increase their lead to the largest of the second half, at 52-45, following a 1-of-2 performance by Tijdiane Dioumassi at the charity stripe, making it a 52-45 Western Carolina lead with 10 minutes left.
An 8-0 by the Paladins, which started with a three from Charles Johnston and ended with Asa Thomas' lone made three of the game, staked the Paladins to a narrow, 53-52, lead with 8:19 left.
The Catamounts hit back with six-straight of their own, as Dioumassi finished a layup in the paint and a short jumper just outside the paint, while a Kell turnaround, fade-a-way sandwiched those two buckets from his teammate, as the Catamounts took a 58-53 lead with 5:45 remaining.
The see-saw affair continued as the intensity increased as did the noise level inside the refurbished Timmons Arena down the stretch, as the Paladins posted seven-straight points of their own, utilizing a friendly bounce over the front rim for a Tom House three to go in, and then Wilkins added back-to-back buckets to give Furman the 60-58 lead with 4:18 remaining.
Neither team would lead by more than two points over the final four minutes, and the lead would also change hands four times over the final three minutes. After Wilkins made a layup to give the Paladins a 65-63 lead with 2:15 remaining, a Soumaoro jumper, which was well-guarded, hit nothing but the bottom of the net to tie the game with 1:14 remaining.
Furman had a chance to win the game in regulation following a three-pointer missed by Stansberry for the Catamounts inside the final 30 seconds, and it was rebounded by Tom House, who got the ball to Wilkins and after dribbling the clock down to four seconds, he dribbled to the corner and fed Asa Thomas at the right elbow for a three as time expired, but the shot was well short, sending the game to overtime.
In the extra session, Western Carolina took the initiative and after a Tom House three answered another Kell fade-a-way in the paint, which gave the Paladins a brief 68-67 lead 50 seconds into the extra session, the Catamounts would score nine-straight points over the next two-and-a-half minutes, assuming a 76-68 lead after Dioumassi knocked down a pair of foul shots with 1:15 left.
Things would get particularly interesting when Asa Thomas was fouled on a three with 1:09 left. Thomas made all three foul shots to cut the Furman deficit to five. Soumaoro answered with a tough fade-a-way, 12-foot jumper, despite being guarded well, extending the WCU lead back to seven, at 78-71, with 40 seconds left.
Furman raced quickly down the floor and House converted a layup to make it a five-point deficit for the Paladins with 31 seconds remaining. Furman called a quick timeout to set up a press, which would pay off in a big way, as the Paladins got steals by Ben Vander Wal and Abijah Franklin to produce consecutive layups by Johnston and Wilkins, getting the Paladins to within a single point, at 78-77, with 23 seconds left.
Furman then quickly fouled Stansberry with 15 seconds remaining and he knocked down both charity shots to increase the WCU lead back to 80-77. Following a Furman timeout with 6.7 seconds remaining after crossing the timeline, head coach Bob Richey drew up a play for his star guard Wilkins, however, after clearing out one side of the floor, the Paladins needed a three and Wilkins step-back triple was well short, and WCU escaped Timmons Arena with a three-point win.
Power Rankings after Two SoCon Games:
1. ETSU (10-5, 2-0 SoCon)
2. Furman (10-5, 1-1 SoCon)
3. Wofford (10-5, 2-0 SoCon)
4. Mercer (8-7, 0-2 SoCon)
5. Western Carolina (6-9, 1-1 SoCon)
6. UNCG (6-9, 2-0 SoCon)
7. Samford (8-7, 1-1 SoCon)
8. VMI (6-9, 1-1 SoCon)
9. Chattanooga (6-9, 0-2 SoCon)
10. The Citadel (3-12, 0-2 SoCon)
Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026 Slate
*Furman at Chattanooga, 5 p.m. EST (CBS Sports Network)
*UNCG at Wofford, 6 p.m. EST (Nexstar SoCon Game of the Week)
*Western Carolina at Samford, 7 p.m. EST
*The Citadel at Mercer, 7 p.m. EST
*VMI at ETSU, 7 p.m. EST
Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026 Slate
*Western Carolina at The Citadel, 1 p.m. EST
*VMI at Furman, 2 p.m. EST
*Wofford at Mercer, 2 p.m. EST
*UNCG at ETSU, 4 p.m. EST
*Samford at Chattanooga, 4:30 p.m. EST (Nexstar SoCon Game of the Week)
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