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| Furman sophomore wing forward Mason Smith (photo courtesy of Jeremy Fleming/Furman athletics) |
With the win, Wofford improves to 12-7 overall and 4-2 in Southern Conference action, while Furman, which fell for the second time in four home league outings this season and suffered its third overall home loss at the new Timmons Arena, fell to 13-6 overall and 4-2 in SoCon play.
Wofford improved to 36-23 against the Paladins since joining the Southern Conference as a member in 1997-98, while Furman now holds a 93-66 edge in the all-time series. Saturday's contest marked the 159th all-time series meeting between the two I-85 rivals, with the two slated to lace 'em up against one another for the 160th clash on Feb. 21, 2026, at the Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium, with tip-off set for 7 p.m. EST.
The past two meetings between the Paladins and Terriers have involved late-game runs that ultimately seen the Terriers prevail over the Paladins in games that Furman was leading.
In Asheville just last March, Wofford went on a 13-2 run over the final 2:33 to overcome a four-point deficit and come away with their sixth Southern Conference Tournament title, improving to 6-1 in championship game and moving on to the NCAA Tournament as a result.
The 17-0 run, which would ultimately come at a crucial point in the contest, as Furman held a 59-46 lead when Ben Vander Wal converted a layup off a Wofford turnover to give the Paladins their biggest lead of the night with 9:59 remaining. Furman wouldn't score again until a pair of Alex Wilkins free throws with 3:02 left and wouldn't score from the field again until Wilkins knocked down a jumper with 2:12 remaining.
Over the course of nearly seven minutes of final 10 minutes of basketball between the I-85 rivals, Wofford went from trailing 59-46 with 9:59 remaining to leading 63-59 following a Brian Sumpter second-chance opportunity with 3:16 remaining. When Wilkins drained a jumper to tie the game, 63-63, with 2:12 remaining, it would turn out to be the final time the two teams would be tied.
Furman, which started the game with just eight scholarship players, finished the afternoon with just six available after Cole Bowser was pulled from re-entering the game after some sort of injury to his nose, face or jaw, while Mason Smith's first-half apparent knee injury rendered the Paladins to just seven scholarship players for much of the afternoon.
Smith posted 11 rebounds and six points in his first sizable playing time of the season against Samford, as the Paladins pulled out a 77-73 road win. When exiting the lineup on Saturday evening, Smith had played only 4:30 but already had five points and three boards and was a +10 for the day. He was the highest +/- for the Paladins the entire evening.
The Paladins expect to return guards Collin O'Neal and Tom House in the coming week at some point, as the Paladins travel to The Citadel on Wednesday evening and UNC Greensboro on Saturday.
Cooper Bowser is expected back late in the month. By the start of February, Furman could have back most of its scoring production if the positive progressions continued to be made by that trio of players through the rehabilitation process.
As for Asa Thomas, his injury, which happened against VMI last week, will have a little more of a recovery time, but he is expected back sometime in mid-February. Early signs as to Smith's injury don't point to an immediate return, unfortunately.
Wofford was led in the contest by 20 points from both Kahmare Holmes and Nils Machowski, who scored 20 points apiece, as the duo accounted for 40 of the team's 74 points. Holmes finished off his ninth 20+point scoring effort of the season by connecting on 7-of-15 shots from the field and was 1-for-4 from three-point range. He also posted a 5-of-6 effort at the charity stripe and also added three assists and a steal.
Machowski, who was the national mid-major player of the week just a couple of weeks ago, continued his strong performance to start out league play, as he connected on 7-of-14 shots from the field and was 4-for-9 from three-point range.
Also adding double-figure scoring efforts for the Terriers were both Chace Watley and Brian Sumpter, who scored 15 and 10 points, respectively. Sumpter added a game-high 14 rebounds to finish off a double-double performance.
The Paladins finished off the contest with three players finding their way into the double figures scoring column in the game, as Alex Wilkins led the Paladins with 19 points, four assists, and two rebounds in just over 37 minutes of floor time.
Wilkins struggled mostly from long-range, going 1-of-10 from distance, but was 6-of-10 from two-point range to finish 7-for-20 for the game. He would post a perfect 4-for-4 performance from the charity stripe.
Abijah "Baba" Franklin finished the day with his best performance in a Furman uniform, as the Wren High School product and South Carolina Mr. Basketball finished with a career-high 14 points, highlighted by his mid-court buzzer-beater off a steal to give the Paladins a seven-point, 37-30, halftime lead. Franklin finished his evening with a 5-for-8 effort from the field, including 3-of-4 from long-range and was 1-for-2 at the line. Franklin also added six rebounds, two steals and an assist.
The only other Paladin to finish the contest in double figures was Ben Vander Wal, who added 10 points, five rebounds, and two assists.
Before exiting the game late, Cole Bowser delivered another solid performance for the Paladins, as he finished the game with six points, a team-leading eight rebounds, recorded one steal and blocked a shot.
Furman freshmen accounted for 46 of their 70 points, but also eight of the team's 12 turnovers, with most of those leading to a crucial 18 points from turnovers that the Terriers benefitted from in the game.
It's a sign of both Furman's uber-taleted freshman class, while also showing what an incredible load they are having to shoulder due to injuries, as well as having to learn some things the hard way in transitioning to NCAA Division I basketball.
Wofford was efficient all evening, but particularly in the second half, as the Terriers shot 56.7% (17-of-30) in the second half, which highlighted at 50% (29-of-58) shooting performance for the game. As Furman began to tire late, the Terriers went right at Furman and took the ball to the basket rather than settling for threes and were able to get many good looks in the paint, as the Terriers posted one of their most efficient halves of basketball in league play to this point, particularly when it comes to establishing and winning the battle in the paint. The Terriers were also strong at the charity stripe, finishing the game at 76.9% (10-of-13).
Furman on the other hand, struggled shooting as the game wore on, and during Wofford's late surge, saw its offense stagnate, with the ball sticking in certain spots and poor shot-clock management more often than not led to poor shot selection, as the Paladins went 0-of-7 from three-point range during that 17-0 Terrier run, which proved to be the difference.
The Paladins finished the contest connecting on 43.9% (25-of-57) from the field and just 27.6% (8-of-29) from three-point range. Furman was a solid 80% (12-of-15) from the charity stripe.
Wofford finished the contest holding advantages in points in the paint (44-26), points off turnovers (18-11), and total assists (12-11). Furman ended the contest by holding advantages in bench scoring (23-4), second-chance points (18-10), total rebounds (35-30), and fast-break points (12-6).
All told, Furman held the lead for 28:56 of the 40-minute, game and the game featuring five lead changes, while the score would be tied on six occasions.
How It Happened:
Furman came out and made the first 3-0, as Alex Wilkins used a step-back triple, however, Wofford would settle into the game and after a layup from Cayden Vasko and a three by Nils Mahowski, the Terriers settled into the game and a three and layup by Kahmare Holmes, sparked a 9-2 spurt, with Furman’s only other bucket coming from Eddrin Bronson, as the Terriers headed to the first median timeout with an 11-5 lead at the 15:15 mark of the opening half.
Furman pulled even quickly, as back-to-back threes by Mason Smith and Baba Franklin tied the game, 11-11, and then a Wilkins feed to Owen Ritger for a one-handed stuff to tie it 13-13 before Wilkins gave the Paladins a brief 15-13 lead with a teardrop runner. However, Terrier freshman guard Chace Watley answered with a layup for Wofford to tie the game 15-15 at the under 12 media.
Holmes gave Wofford a brief 16-15 lead following the media timeout, however, Mason Smith answered with an offensive rebound and layup in the paint to put Furman on top by a point. The Paladins then extended that lead to four after Charles Johnston took a feed from Alex Wilkins and knocked down a three to make it a 20-16 game.
Following another Furman stop, the Paladins extended their lead to six after Mason Smith was fouled, but had to leave the game due to injury. Since he was fouled in the act of shooting, Cole Bowser shot the two foul shots instead of and he would knock down both free throws to extend Furman’s lead to its largest of the day, 22-16.
Wofford would quickly charge back, however, but could never grab the lead, despite having chances to take the lead late in the half. With the Paladins clinging to a 32-30 lead, Cole Bowser extended it to four when Ben Vander Wal found Cole Bowser for a layup to make it a 34-30 game. Then off the ensuing inbounds pass. Abijah Franklin stole the ball and then launched a three that banked in from about 34-feet as the buzzer sounded, bringing a roar out of the crowd. The Paladins took the 37-30 lead to the break.
Out of the locker room, Furman was sluggish, with two turnovers on its first two possessions, while the Terriers got a pair of free throws from Holmes and a turnover in the paint, which led to a Brian Sumpter layup and got the Terriers to within three, at 37-34, with 18:34 remaining.
Furman came out and made the first 3-0, as Alex Wilkins used a step-back triple, however, Wofford would settle into the game and after a layup from Cayden Vasko and a three by Nils Mahowski, the Terriers settled into the game and a three and layup by Kahmare Holmes, sparked a 9-2 spurt, with Furman’s only other bucket coming from Eddrin Bronson, as the Terriers headed to the first median timeout with an 11-5 lead at the 15:15 mark of the opening half.
Furman pulled even quickly, as back-to-back threes by Mason Smith and Baba Franklin tied the game, 11-11, and then a Wilkins feed to Owen Ritger for a one-handed stuff to tie it 13-13 before Wilkins gave the Paladins a brief 15-13 lead with a teardrop runner. However, Terrier freshman guard Chace Watley answered with a layup for Wofford to tie the game 15-15 at the under 12 media.
Holmes gave Wofford a brief 16-15 lead following the media timeout, however, Mason Smith answered with an offensive rebound and layup in the paint to put Furman on top by a point. The Paladins then extended that lead to four after Charles Johnston took a feed from Alex Wilkins and knocked down a three to make it a 20-16 game.
Following another Furman stop, the Paladins extended their lead to six after Mason Smith was fouled, but had to leave the game due to injury. Since he was fouled in the act of shooting, Cole Bowser shot the two foul shots instead of and he would knock down both free throws to extend Furman’s lead to its largest of the day, 22-16.
Wofford would quickly charge back, however, but could never grab the lead, despite having chances to take the lead late in the half. With the Paladins clinging to a 32-30 lead, Cole Bowser extended it to four when Ben Vander Wal found Cole Bowser for a layup to make it a 34-30 game. Then off the ensuing inbounds pass. Abijah Franklin stole the ball and then launched a three that banked in from about 34-feet as the buzzer sounded, bringing a roar out of the crowd. The Paladins took the 37-30 lead to the break.
Out of the locker room, Furman was sluggish, with two turnovers on its first two possessions, while the Terriers got a pair of free throws from Holmes and a turnover in the paint, which led to a Brian Sumpter layup and got the Terriers to within three, at 37-34, with 18:34 remaining.
After Sumpter dunked home an alley-oop off a great feed from Nils Machowski cut Furman's lead to three, at 39-36, at the 17:51 mark, the Paladins would score the next seven to take their biggest lead of the game to that point, at 10, following a driving layup by Wilkins, as Furman assumed the 46-36 lead with 15:47 remaining.
Furman would outscore the Terriers 20-10 in just under the next six minutes of game action, taking a 59-46 lead on a Ben Vander Wal layup off a steal, however, the highlight of the run for the Paladins was a lob from Wilkins-to-Cole Bowser, which he hammered home to put the Paladins up 11 (57-46) on the possession prior to Vander Wal increasing Furman's lead to its largest of the afternoon and bringing the Timmons capacity crowd to its loudest decibel level of the evening.
Following Vander Wal's layup with 9:59 left, however, it was all Terriers, as Vasko started the 17-0 run on a short jumper at the 9:25 mark. By the time Wofford had finished its run, the Terriers would have a four-point lead, at 63-59, following a Sumpter offensive rebound and layup in the paint at the 3:16 mark.
Wilkins would score four-straight on a pair of free throws and a baseline jumper, which tied the game, 63-63, with 2:12 remaining. However, Wofford would hit back with five-straight to take a 68-63 lead, as Machowski connected on the biggest shot of the game, which came on a left elbow three to give the Terriers the lead back immediately, and then after Furman's Franklin recorded a steal and Vander Wal came up with the loose ball, his pass was picked off by Holmes, who converted the easy layup and Wofford all of the sudden went back up five, at 68-63, with 1:07 left.
Another two Wilkins free throws were answered by a Watley layup for the Terriers, keeping the margin at five, at 70-65, with 37 seconds remaining. An offensive rebound and layup by Vander Wal trimmed the margin back to three before Whatley answered with a pair of made free throws after Furman's Wilkins was forced to foul. Watley's foul shots with were perfect, giving the Terriers a five-point cushion once again, at 72-67, with 23 seconds remaining.
A desperation three by Franklin was good following a second-chance opportunity provided by an offensive rebound from Vander Wal, getting the Paladins back to within two, at 72-70, with 11 seconds remaining. However, Furman was forced to foul again, and this time it was Machowski, who was 80.2% from the line coming into the game, and he knocked down both free throws with nine seconds left to make it academic, and the Terriers traveled back to Spartanburg with a big four-point SoCon win over their arch-rival in-tow.
Both the Paladins and Terriers will return to action on Wednesday evening, with Wofford hosting Samford (9-10, 2-4 SoCon) in a 6 p.m. EST contest at the Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium. Furman will be on the road to take on suddenly hot The Citadel (5-14, 2-3 SoCon), who picked up an 82-68 win at VMI on Saturday evening to record its first SoCon road win since Jan. 25, 2023, as the Bulldogs have won two of their last three games. Tip-off for the Paladins and Bulldogs is set for 7 p.m. EST at McAlister Field House.
Postgame Press Conference:
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