Furman and Wofford get road wins

Furman Holds Off The Citadel For Season Sweep

Jordan Lyons led three players in double figures, as Furman picked up a 71-61 Southern Conference victory over The Citadel Thursday night at McAlister Field House.

With the win, the Paladins collected the season sweep over the Bulldogs and improved to 17-5 overall and 6-4 in Southern Conference play, while The Citadel fell to 10-11 overall and 2-8 in league action. The road win by Furman marked its seventh true win of the season.

Lyons, who was held to just eight points last time out in the loss to Samford, scored his 20 points on 8-of-16 shooting from the field, including going 3-for-10 from three-point range in the win and was also 1-for-2 from the line. Additionally, the junior guard from Peachtree City, GA, finished with two steals, two assists and a block.

Lyons was joined in double figures for the Paladins by sophomore point guard Alex Hunter and redshirt sophomore forward Clay Mounce, who added 17 points apiece. Hunter and Mounce both dished out five assists apiece, and Mounce also had six rebounds and two steals.

Senior forward and Southern Conference Player of the Year candidate Matt Rafferty was held below double figures for just the second time all season, and the first time in SoCon play, but he was clutch in other areas in the win. The senior from Hinsdale, Ill, finished the night with eight points, a team-leading 10 rebounds, dished out four assists, and had three steals and a block.

Furman would break open the game from the outset of the second half, using a 16-2 run to open the second half, building as much as a 19-point lead (50-31) following a Mounce triple with 14:56 remaining in the game.

 The Bulldogs, however, went on a run of their own, whittling the Furman lead inside 10 points, with a 13-2 run of its own, using a Lew Stallworth layup to cut the Paladin advantage to eight, at 52-44, with 9:06 remaining.

The lead for the Paladins would fluctuate between 8-14 points over the next five-and-a-half minutes until a pair of Zane Najdawi free throws with 3:31 remaining cut trimmed The Citadel deficit to its slimmest of the second half, at 67-61.

However, layups by Rafferty and Lyons, along with some strong defense from the duo, which included a Lyons steal and a Rafferty block over the final 3:31, allowed Furman to escape Charleston with the 71-61 Southern Conference win.

The Paladins went to the halftime locker room with a 34-29 lead on the strength of the play from Hunter, who scored 11 of his 17 points in the opening half of play. The Paladins were also stellar defensively, holding the Bulldogs to just 38.5% (10-for-26) and forcing 12 Citadel turnovers in the opening frame.

For the game, Furman held advantages in shooting percentage (45.5%-40.4%), second chance points (11-10), assists (19-7) and fast-break points (14-6). The Bulldogs held advantages in points in the paint (30-24), points off turnovers (20-15), bench points (18-9) and total rebounds (36-29). The Citadel turned the ball over 19 times in the contest, while Furman committed 15 miscues.

Stallworth led three Bulldogs in double figures, posting 19 points on 8-of-17 shooting from the field and 3-for-5 shooting from the charity stripe. The senior point guard also had six rebounds, dished out five of the team's seven assists, and recorded a steal. He was joined in double figures by both Najdawi (14 pts) and Kaiden Rice (13 pts). Najdawi, a senior center, narrowly missed a double-double, finishing with nine rebounds.

Furman returns to action Saturday afternoon when it travels to Hawkins Arena in Macon, GA, to face Mercer, with tip-off set for 4 p.m. The Bulldogs will prepare to host league-leading Wofford in a 1 p.m. tip-off at McAlister Field House on Saturday afternoon.

Wofford Keeps Rolling

Furman's travel partner Wofford kept things rolling in the right direction in Southern Conference play, improving to 18-4 overall and remained a perfect 10-0 in league play, with a 76-67 win over Mercer Thursday night at Hawkins Arena. The loss saw the Bears fall to 8-14 overall and 3-7 in Southern Conference play.

Wofford finished the month of January a perfect 8-0, and the Terriers have won nine-straight heading into their Southern Conference game Saturday afternoon at The Citadel.

The Terriers were powered by a prolific performance from beyond the arc in both makes (13) and attempts (40) from three-point range in the contest, with sharp-shooting guards Nathan Hoover and Fletcher Magee combining to connect on 10 of the Terriers' 13 triples in the contest.

Magee led the Terriers with 23 points, which included connecting on 5-of-9 from long range, while also finishing 7-of-14 from the field and a perfect 4-for-4 from the charity stripe. Hoover went 5-for-8 from downtown, and was 5-of-9 from the field and 3-for-3 from the line to finish the contest with 18 points.

Senior center Cameron Jackson finished out the Terriers in double figures, posting 12 points, while grabbing six boards.

Wofford held just a 40-37 lead at the half, but Wofford was able to widen the gap in the second half, as Magee and sophomore point guard Storm Murphy helped the Terriers open the second half in strong fashion, with back-to-back three-pointers and a 6-0 Wofford run, helping the Terriers to extend their lead to nine (46-37) early on in the frame.

Mercer would eventually cut into the Wofford lead in the second half, cutting the deficit to two, at 63-61, following a pair of Djordje Dimitrijevic free throws with 6:35 remaining. On the ensuing trip down the floor, Hoover was fouled attempting a three-pointer, and went to the stripe, calmly converting all three charity shots to stretch the Terriers' lead back to five, at 66-61 with 6:24 left.

Two more free throws by the Bears cut Wofford's lead back to three, setting the stage for a big three from Magee from the left elbow, extending Wofford's lead back to two possessions (69-63) with 3:52 remaining. A Jackson layup and a Magee layup extended Wofford's lead to nine, at 72-63, with 2:49 remaining, as the Bears had three-consecutive empty possessions.

An Ethan Stair jumper trimmed Wofford's lead to seven (72-65) with 2:26 left, but a pair of Keve Aluma free throws stretched the Wofford lead to nine (74-65) with 2:02 remaining. After a Cory Kilby layup with just under two minutes left, the Terriers were able to close out the win with a pair of Storm Murphy free throws with 36 seconds remaining, providing the final score of 76-67.

Mercer was led in the contest by Cory Kilby's 16 points, and he led four Bears players in double figures. He was joined by Ethan Stair (14 pts), Djordje Dimitrijevic (12 pts) and Ross Cummings (11 pts). For Cummings, it was his 13th-straight game in double figures.


Wofford actually opened up a 15-point first-half advantage, at 37-22