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| Furman and Western Carolina battled for the 76th time in the series at Timmons Arena Wednesday night |
Western Carolina is Who We Thought They Were
Prior to the season, I wrote an article for mid-major madness detailing how I thought Western Carolina was a sleeper to watch in the Southern Conference. Well, I am calling myself out for being wrong.
Facing their first real Southern Conference test on the road tonight against a mature, seasoned Furman team that had four starters back from a team that won 25 games a year ago. The Catamounts, which have nearly doubled their seven wins from a year ago, showed they were much more than a sleeper in this year’s Southern Conference race.
The Catamounts had shown us glimpses of how good they could be before, flirting with major upsets against a Top 10 Florida State team, leading the Seminoles by as many as 17 points before dropping a 79-75 contest in the end. The Catamounts also held a halftime lead against Georgia before eventually falling 91-72 in a game that was much closer than the final score would indicate.
While the Catamounts passed the eye test easily for the 1,695 fans that witnessed the game at Timmons Arena on Wednesday night, I kind of came away with the feeling having sat behind the Western bench on press row that the Catamounts and head coach Mark Prosser weren’t all too interested in moral victories. No, this was a team pretty angry about the outcome.
The anger stemmed from the fact that while the Catamounts have been far and away the surprise of the league so far, they have yet to notch that signature victory this season. They will have another chance Saturday when preseason SoCon favorite East Tennessee State comes to the Ramsey Center to battle the Catamounts for the biggest game in Cullowhee in quite some time.
Battle for Purple Supremacy
It was a true battle for purple supremacy Wednesday night at Timmons Arena, with the winner being in sole possession or a share of first place in the Southern Conference standings at the end of 40 minutes of basketball between Furman and Western Carolina.
In a game that featured crisp basketball on both ends of the floor, it was Furman that rebounded from its first Southern Conference against UNC Greensboro Saturday night to hand Western Carolina its first league loss of the season and snap a five-game Catamount winning streak coming in, with an 83-79 win over the Catamounts. Furman had to earn every bit of its eighth-straight win in the series, as the Paladins were locked in a battle for the entire 40 minutes Wednesday night.
The win saw the Paladins improve to 15-4 overall and 5-1 in Southern Conference place, while Western Carolina dropped to 12-4 overall and 4-1 in league action. The Paladins also improved to 58-11 overall and 33-5 in SoCon play at Timmons Arena since the start of the 2015-16 season. In Greenville, the Paladins are 59-12 and 33-6 in Greenville over that same span. The Paladins also improved to 15-1 when hold their opposition to 80 or fewer points this season.
One thing we learned is that the Catamounts aren’t playing around in 2019-20, facing the first of the projected top three finishers in the SoCon, according to the league’s media and coaches.
The Catamounts showed just how many improvements they had made, leading by as many as six in the second half, but strong performances by Noah Gurley, Jalen Slawson and Jordan Lyons down the stretch kept Furman’s undefeated record at Timmons Arena this season intact.
Jordan Lyons led six Paladins in double figures tonight, posting 20 points, four assists, three rebounds and a steal to lead the Paladins. It marks the first time this season the Paladins have had six players score in double figures. For Lyons, it was his sixth 20-point effort of the season, including his third in SoCon play.
Western Carolina got a game-high 21 points and 11 boards from senior center Carlos Dotson—19 in the second half—as he led four Catamount players in double figures in the loss. The Catamounts came to town with the league’s leader in rebounding, in Dotson, and league’s leading scorer, in point guard Mason Faulkner.
Both ended the night with double-doubles, as Faulkner, a transfer from Northern Kentucky, finished with 12 points and 10 assists. Faulkner flirted with his second triple-double of the season with six boards. For Dotson, it was his league-leading eighth double-double of the season.
The Catamounts certainly presented Furman its share of problems defensively in the midweek clash between, with Dotson coming in as one of the top interior players in the Southern Conference, while coming in leading in the SoCon in three-point field goal percentage (38.7%) and third in three-pointers made per game (10.6/159) and the Catamounts didn’t disappoint any of those categories Wednesday night.
Dotson’s 11-rebound performance was part of a 36-34 edge the Catamounts held on the backboards, while the Purple and Gold also didn’t disappoint shooting the ball from beyond the arc, as the Catamounts knocked down 13 three-pointers, shooting them at a 41.9% clip (13-of-31).
Both teams shot the ball well all night, with the Catamounts finishing the night connecting on 47.6% (30-of-63) from the field, while the Paladins finished the night connecting on 45.9% (28-of-61) from the field, but struggled shooting from long range, hitting on just 27.6% (8-of-29) from three.
Western Carolina held advantages in rebounding (36-34), assists (19-17), fast break points (5-0) and bench scoring (11-10). Furman held advantages in points off turnovers (15-2), points in the paint (36-32), and second-chance points (11-6). The game featured 12 lead changes and four ties.
The Paladins made the most of their 25 free throw attempts, connecting on 19 of them, while the Catamounts finished the night 6-for-8 from the charity stripe.
Furman managed to off-set the Catamount advantages in both categories by scoring 15 points off 11 Catamount turnovers, while turning the ball over themselves only seven times, which led to only two Catamount points.
The Turning Point
The lead changed hands 12 times, but the decisive one took place with just under 4:30 remaining, with the game tied, 69-69. Noah Gurley would take over by scoring six-straight points, recording a pair of driving layups in the lane and a pair of free throws to help the Paladins take a vital 75-69 lead with 2:18 remaining after connecting on his second of two free throws on a two-shot foul.
The last points from the field for the Paladins came on one of those two Gurley layups with 3:47 remaining, as the Paladins knocked down 8-of-10 free throws down the stretch to close out its fifth Southern Conference win of the season.
After Furman opened the second half with a corner three from Alex Hunter to take a 44-33 lead, Western Carolina went to work, and started feeding Dotson.
The senior, who scored just two points in the opening half, got the Catamounts going in the second half. In fact, for a while, it looked like the 6-7, 270-lb native of Riverdale, MD, couldn’t be stopped, scoring 12 of Western’s first 14 points of the second half to eventually give the Catamounts a 47-46 lead following a layup in the lane with 14:50 remaining.
Western would eventually extend its lead to 54-48 with 12:40 remaining in the game following one of Faulkner’s two three-point field goals in the contest. It was all part of a 21-7 run to open the second half, highlighted by Dotson’s strong start.
Furman would begin to respond, however, as it has already seen several gut checks through the first six conference games in a slate that has included consecutive games against East Tennessee State, UNC Greensboro, and now, Western Carolina.
Like he did against East Tennessee State, Furman sophomore forward Jalen Slawson helped pump life back into the Paladins, scoring on a layup and then getting fouled on a three-pointer and knocked down all three foul shots. He was again the instant energy Furman needed when and his 5-0 run on his own got Furman back to within 54-53.
From that point forward, Western’s lead never grew to more than three points the remainder of the game.
Individual Superlatives
Slawson finished the night with 12 points, eight boards, two blocks, two assists and a steal, while his low-post teammate Gurley completed the night with 13 points, five boards, four and assists.
Mounce rounded out maybe the most complete game of the season for the Paladin frontcourt, as he posted 15 points, four assists and a steal.
It was just as complete of an effort from the backcourt in terms of how the team shared the balance the entire night. Lyons scored his 20 points on 7-of-16 shooting from the field, including 2-for-9 from three-point range. He was also 4-for-7 from the charity stripe.
In addition to what he did scoring-wise, Lyons also added four assists, three rebounds, and a steal. Alex Hunter and rounded out the double-figure scorers for the Paladins, adding 13 and 10 points, respectively.
Dotson’s 21 points for the Catamounts came on 10-of-14 shooting from the field and he also converted on his lone trip the charity stripe.
Senior forward Onno Steger and junior guard Matt Halvorsen added 14 apiece, as the duo went 8-of-16 from three-point range, knocking down four apiece. The duo also combined to dish out six of the team’s impressive 19 assists in the contest. Both Steger and Dotson fouled out of the contest late for the Catamounts.
Faulkner scored his 12 points on 4-of-13 shooting from the field, including 2-for-7 from three-point land. He was also 2-for-3 from the free throw line.
Quotable
Bob Richey on winning the battle for Purple Supremacy:
"What a game. They evaporated our margin quickly and then we got down by five or six ... but we continued to battle and fight. A lot of guys stepped up. If you were in Timmons Arena tonight as a spectator, that had to be fun. That was two teams that just battled the whole night.”
WCU’s Carlos Dotson on his big second half and his team’s competitiveness with top teams in the SoCon:
“Second half I started to get more touches and I know what to do down there when I get the ball…We showed we could compete with the top teams in the conference…Now we just have to learn how to finish them and we have another opportunity on Saturday to try and do that so we can’t dwell on this too long.”
Link To Entire Postgame Press Conference
What’s Ahead For Furman
Furman has another big test on the horizon traveling north on I-85 to face a Wofford team that will smarting from a 72-59 setback at Chattanooga Wednesday night, as the Paladins take on reigning league and tournament champion Wofford Friday night. Furman has not won at Wofford since taking a 73-68 win over the Terriers on Jan. 21, 2011.
Friday night’s nationally-televised contest (ESPNU) will mark the143rd all-time meeting between the two schools, with Furman owning a commanding 86-56 series edge, however, the Terriers took both meetings between the two last season. Since joining the SoCon in the 1996-97 season, Wofford owns a 28-19 series advantage against the Paladins and have won 13 of the past 17 meetings between the two.
Other Action Wednesday Night Around The SoCon:
First-Half Shooting Woes Prove Costly For Wofford
There were four other games around the SoCon Wednesday night, with the one that caught the attention of most being the Wofford contest at Chattanooga.
The Terriers, who trailed by 23 at the half (43-20), managed to trim the margin to 72-59 by the end of the night. Wofford struggled shooting the basketball all night, falling in a hole in the opening half after shooting 30.2% from the field and 15.4% from three-point range, while the Mocs were hitting on all cylinders in the opening half of play, as the Mocs shot 53.3% and for the third-straight game, looked like one of the best teams in the Southern Conference in the opening half of play.
The Terriers would rebound to shoot 48.3% in the second half, including 37% from three-point range, but it wouldn’t be nearly enough to catch the red-hot Mocs. Chattanooga shot a solid 48% in the second half of play at the Roundhouse, and had three players post double-figure scoring efforts in the win, with David Jean-Baptiste leading the way with 18 points, while Matt Ryan and Ramon Vila chipped in with 17 and 14 points, respectively.
The win saw the Mocs improve to 12-6 overall and 3-2 in Southern Conference play, while Wofford dropped to 11-7 overall and 3-2 in league play. Nathan Hoover was the lone Terrier in double figures, and despite Wofford’s struggles offensively, individually he had a good night finishing with 20 points on 8-of-16 shooting from the field. Hoover was 4-of-9 from three, however, the rest of the team went just 5-of-23 from long range in the contest.
In a game like this, it’s where not having a guy like a Keve Aluma really shows up. Chattanooga has added size, with the additions of Stefan Kenic and Matt Ryan. It almost forces the Terriers in some games to make shots when they are mostly at a size disadvantage, as the Mocs out-boarded the Terriers 38-26 in the contest.
More often than not, Jay McAuley’s club can make shots with the best of them, but when there’s an off-night against a team with size and rebound’s the ball well, it’s not the type of recipe that will bode well for the Terriers this season.
Both teams will have a different type of challenge coming up, with Wofford hosting Furman in a nationally-televised game on ESPNU Friday night, while Chattanooga travels to UNC Greensboro to tangle with the Spartans.
Mercer Picks Up First SoCon Win
In a battle of the SoCon winless, Mercer claimed its first league win of the Greg Gary era, posting a 73-62 over VMI Wednesday night at Hawkins Arena.
The win for the Bears, however, didn’t come easy. VMI held a 38-27 lead at the half, and it would requite a 60.8% shooting half from Mercer in the second half to pick up the win. The victory saw the Bears improve to 7-11 overall and 1-4 in SoCon play, while the Keydets fell to 5-14 and 0-6 in league play.
For the second time this week, Djordje Dmitrijevic would post an outstanding performance. Coming off a 32-point performance in a 79-71 loss to Western Carolina last time out, Dmitrijevic would follow it up Wednesday night with 26 points on the strength of a career-high six three pointers.
Five of Dimitrijevic’s six triples came in the second half. After connecting on the game-tying three-pointer with 9:16 left, the 6-3 senior guard gave the Bears their first lead of the night with another triple, giving Mercer a 57-55 lead with 7:57 remaining. It was part of a 19-2 run over a 7:45 span that would allow the Bears to take as much as a 16-point lead before going on to the 11-point win.
Travis Evee continued his impressive freshman season leading three Keydets in double figures with 17 points.
Mercer will look to make it two-straight wins Saturday when it travels to Samford to take on the Bulldogs at the Pete Hanna Center. Tip-off for that contest is set for 3 p.m. EST. VMI returns to action Saturday hosting its arch-rival, The Citadel, with tip-off slated for 1 p.m. at Cameron Hall. The Keydets will be looking to snap a six-game losing skid.
East Tennessee State keeps pace with Furman
East Tennessee State remained unbeaten at home on Wednesday night, downing Samford 88-63 at Freedom Hall to keep pace with Furman atop the Southern Conference standings, as ETSU improved to 16-3 overall and 5-1 in the SoCon, while the Bulldogs dropped to 8-11 overall and 2-3 in league play.
The Bucs had five players score in double figures in the win, led by Tray Boyd, who came off the bench to score a team-leading 16 points, while Central Connecticut State graduate transfer Joe Hugley added 14 points and five boards in another strong performance in his increased role with Jeromy Rodriguez continuing to be sidelined with an injury.
Fellow frontcourt contributor Lucas N’Guessan chipped in with 12 points, five boards and a block, while guards Daivien Williamson and Patrick Good both contributed 11 points.
The Bucs were efficient and balanced, getting 45 points off of its bench, while scoring 48 in the paint. More importantly, the Bucs continued to play some of the best defense in mid-major basketball, limiting the visiting Bulldogs to just 39.6% shooting for the game and 63 points.
The Bulldogs came in ranking fifth in the SoCon in both categories, shooting 45.0% from the field per game coming in, as well as averaging 75.9 PPG, ending the night well below both offensive averages.
SoCon co-leading scorer Josh Sharkey finished with 18 points, but had only three assists in the loss. He was one of two Bulldogs in double figures in the contest, as sophomore forward Robert Allen came off the bench to post 12 points and two rebounds.
The Bucs went to the half with an eight-point, 37-29, lead. A fifty-percent shooting performance in the second half led to 51 Bucs points, as ETSU outscored the Bulldogs 51-34 in the frame to run away to a 25-point win.
ETSU will be involved in another big one Saturday when it travels to Western Carolina for a 7 p.m. tip time with the Catamounts in Cullowhee. The Bulldogs return to Birmingham to host Mercer for a 3 p.m. EST contest inside the Pete Hanna Center.
UNC Greensboro Gets a Hard Fought Win at The Citadel
UNCG picked up its 12th-straight win over The Citadel in the series, however, as has been a theme with teams picking up road wins to this point in SoCon, it certainly did not come easy at McAlister Field House Wednesday evening.
The Spartans turned what had been a 33-32 halftime deficit into a 79-69 win. The Spartans got a career-high 19 points from James Dickey, and he completed the double-double effort by adding 12 rebounds. Dickey also chipped in with three of the 17 steals amassed by the Spartans in the win.
The 10-point win saw the Spartans improve to 14-5 overall and 4-2 in SoCon play, while the Bulldogs dropped to 6-10 overall and 0-5 in league action.’
The Spartans forced a remarkable 32 turnovers on the night, out-scoring The Citadel 35-11 on points off turnovers, which was obviously a huge factor in the game.
In the past two games alone, the Spartans have forced 52 turnovers, scoring 44 of their 165 points off opponent miscues in the past two outings. The Spartans have also recorded 33 steals in their past two SoCon wins over Furman and The Citadel. The 17 steals matched a SoCon high previously established by the Spartans in a Jan. 1 win over Mercer.
Preseason SoCon Player of the Year Isaiah Miller added 14 point, three steals and two assists, while Angelo Allegri and Malik Massey rounded out the double-figure scorers for the Spartans, with 13 and 10 points, respectively.
Freshman guard Fletcher Abee led the Bulldogs with 20 points, while classmate and forward Brady Spence added 17 points off the bench, as freshmen accounted for over half the Bulldog points in the loss.
The Spartans return to action Saturday night, hosting Chattanooga at the Greensboro Coliseum in a 7 p.m. contest, while The Citadel will be visiting arch-rival VMI at Cameron Hall, with tip-off set for 7 p.m.
The Three Takeaways From Wednesday Night
- The league is more than just four teams this year, and much stronger than a year ago. It’s particularly noticeable when looking at teams like Chattanooga, Western Carolina and even VMI.
- Djordje Dimitrijevic has strung together 32 and 26-point scoring performances and appears to be a leading candidate for SoCon Player of the Week honors.
- East Tennessee State and UNCG are playing high-level defense, however, both will be tested by two of the better shooting teams in the league, when ETSU travels to Western Carolina and UNCG hosts Chattanooga. Still, the defense played by these two teams will help them remain in the mix all season. Add Furman and Western Carolina and their offensive efficiency, and we are in store for an outstanding March in Asheville.
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