ASHEVILLE, N.C.--When Furman claimed its first Southern Conference regular-season title in 43 years—an 88-79 win over Chattanooga in 2023—jokes often circulated that it had taken that long for Paladin basketball to return to the NCAA Tournament. However, when No. 6 seed Furman knocked off No. 1 seed East Tennessee State on March 9, 2026, only 1,099 days separated their SoCon titles. Now the jokes are no longer funny. That's primarily because the Paladins defeated the Bucs 76-61 in the championship game before a sellout crowd of 6,111 fans at the Harrah's Cherokee Center.
While this time it wasn't the first title since 1980, it was the first win over ETSU in a tournament game since then, and only second overall. The Paladins improved their tournament record against ETSU to 2-5, while also equaling ETSU's eight tournament titles by reaching 8-6 in tournament title tilts. The Paladins now await their NCAA Tournament pairing and seeding, which is slated to be revealed on Sunday, March 15, at 6 p.m. EST on CBS.
The Paladins are now 22-12 on the season, while ETSU falls to 23-11 and awaits word on whether it will be invited to the National Invitational Tournament.
The Paladins became just the second No. 6 seed in the 106-year history of the Southern Conference
Tournament to win the championship. They are the second consecutive No. 6 seed to do so, matching Wofford, which won last season as a No. 6 seed after defeating the No. 5 seeded Paladins 92-85 in the 2025 championship game.
The Paladins also became the first team to avenge a championship loss the very next season since the last time they did it. Furman rebounded from a heartbreaking, buzzer-beating 64-63 overtime loss to Chattanooga—which resulted from David Jean-Baptiste 36-footer at the horn that gave the Mocs a dramatic one-point win to conclude the 2022 tournament—by posting an 88-79 win over that same Chattanooga program a year later.
The Paladins ended a three-game losing streak against ETSU dating back to last season. The Bucs had won both regular-season meetings against the Paladins, including a 75-71 overtime victory at Freedom Hall on Feb. 4 after overcoming a 17-point deficit. Two weeks later, the Bucs posted their first win over the Paladins at Timmons Arena since 2018, with a 78-69 result, securing the program's first season sweep of the Paladins since the 1993-94 season.
The palpable impact of last season's championship loss to No. 6 Wofford (L, 92-85) in Asheville was evident in Cooper Bowser's postgame words for Furman. The motivation put toward returning to the title game and finishing the job once there was absolutely evident. Wofford went on a 13-2 run and connected on nine of its final 11 shots to steal the trophy from Furman's grasp last season. It was if Furman never forgot about its late leads blown even this season, with The Citadel, ETSU and Wofford all overcoming double-digit leads down the stretch to steal wins over the Paladins.
On this this night, however, things would be different, as it was almost if Furman's end product in Asheville was a sum of all its prior heartbreaks meshed into a collective defiance from a team that wouldn't be and simply couldn't be stopped from claiming the title prize this time around. That was particularly true for seniors Ben Vander Wal, Tom House, and Charles Johnston, and junior Cooper Bowser and sophomore Eddrin Bronson. They were all a part of that championship setback to Wofford last March.
"For me, personally, (losing in the SoCon title game last year) played a lot in the motivation. I just remember, actually, the first day we drove from the hotel to the arena again this year, I was actually tearing up, because the last thing I remember is just losing this, losing on that bus ride. I don't know, just like a wave of emotions hitting and I started tearing up and tried to make sure no one saw me. But yeah, I was feeling really emotional back there. I mean, it means the world to come back here. I mean, that was motivation all off season for me. I mean, a lot of people went home. I stayed here for the whole the whole month of May, just trying to get stronger," Bowser said postgame.
The Paladins got a double-double from Cooper Bowser with 21 points and 11 rebounds, as the junior center from Woodbridge, VA., recorded his 10th double-double in 12 outings in double figures since returning from a lower body injury that forced him to miss the first 10 Southern Conference games.
Bowser was sensational, connecting on 9-of-12 shots from the field, while also recording his first double-double of the season. Bowser didn't start Furman's first tournament game against Samford because he willingly gave up his spot. He finished upsetting the No. 3 Bulldogs by posting 14 points and six rebounds, then followed that up with 14 points and two rebounds in the semifinal win over UNC Greensboro.
For the tournament, the 6-11 junior finished 21-of-30 from the field, scoring 49 points, grabbing 19 rebounds, dishing out four assists and blocking two shots while helping lead the Paladins to their second title in the past four seasons. Bowser was voted to the First-Team All-SoCon Tournament Team. He was one of three Paladins voted to the first or second all-tournament team.
\Tom House was solid once again. For his efforts in the championship win, the senior guard finished the game with 13 points and made some big shots when the Paladins needed them the most over the weekend. House was named to the SoCon's Second Team All-Tournament team after finishing 4-for-7 from the field, including 2-for-5 from three-point range.
The Paladins also became the first team to avenge a championship loss the very next season since the last time they did it. Furman rebounded from a heartbreaking, buzzer-beating 64-63 overtime loss to Chattanooga—which resulted from David Jean-Baptiste 36-footer at the horn that gave the Mocs a dramatic one-point win to conclude the 2022 tournament—by posting an 88-79 win over that same Chattanooga program a year later.
The Paladins ended a three-game losing streak against ETSU dating back to last season. The Bucs had won both regular-season meetings against the Paladins, including a 75-71 overtime victory at Freedom Hall on Feb. 4 after overcoming a 17-point deficit. Two weeks later, the Bucs posted their first win over the Paladins at Timmons Arena since 2018, with a 78-69 result, securing the program's first season sweep of the Paladins since the 1993-94 season.
The palpable impact of last season's championship loss to No. 6 Wofford (L, 92-85) in Asheville was evident in Cooper Bowser's postgame words for Furman. The motivation put toward returning to the title game and finishing the job once there was absolutely evident. Wofford went on a 13-2 run and connected on nine of its final 11 shots to steal the trophy from Furman's grasp last season. It was if Furman never forgot about its late leads blown even this season, with The Citadel, ETSU and Wofford all overcoming double-digit leads down the stretch to steal wins over the Paladins.
On this this night, however, things would be different, as it was almost if Furman's end product in Asheville was a sum of all its prior heartbreaks meshed into a collective defiance from a team that wouldn't be and simply couldn't be stopped from claiming the title prize this time around. That was particularly true for seniors Ben Vander Wal, Tom House, and Charles Johnston, and junior Cooper Bowser and sophomore Eddrin Bronson. They were all a part of that championship setback to Wofford last March.
"For me, personally, (losing in the SoCon title game last year) played a lot in the motivation. I just remember, actually, the first day we drove from the hotel to the arena again this year, I was actually tearing up, because the last thing I remember is just losing this, losing on that bus ride. I don't know, just like a wave of emotions hitting and I started tearing up and tried to make sure no one saw me. But yeah, I was feeling really emotional back there. I mean, it means the world to come back here. I mean, that was motivation all off season for me. I mean, a lot of people went home. I stayed here for the whole the whole month of May, just trying to get stronger," Bowser said postgame.
The Paladins got a double-double from Cooper Bowser with 21 points and 11 rebounds, as the junior center from Woodbridge, VA., recorded his 10th double-double in 12 outings in double figures since returning from a lower body injury that forced him to miss the first 10 Southern Conference games.
Bowser was sensational, connecting on 9-of-12 shots from the field, while also recording his first double-double of the season. Bowser didn't start Furman's first tournament game against Samford because he willingly gave up his spot. He finished upsetting the No. 3 Bulldogs by posting 14 points and six rebounds, then followed that up with 14 points and two rebounds in the semifinal win over UNC Greensboro.
For the tournament, the 6-11 junior finished 21-of-30 from the field, scoring 49 points, grabbing 19 rebounds, dishing out four assists and blocking two shots while helping lead the Paladins to their second title in the past four seasons. Bowser was voted to the First-Team All-SoCon Tournament Team. He was one of three Paladins voted to the first or second all-tournament team.
\Tom House was solid once again. For his efforts in the championship win, the senior guard finished the game with 13 points and made some big shots when the Paladins needed them the most over the weekend. House was named to the SoCon's Second Team All-Tournament team after finishing 4-for-7 from the field, including 2-for-5 from three-point range.
House was aware of how much the supporting cast needed to step up and sometimes play leading roles when Batman wasn't "Batmanning." In other words, it's important not to rely on just one or two players. In a tournament environment, it's a given that one or both might have an off-night scoring, so others must be ready to fill the scoring void, as well as cover areas that may be deficient over the course of three games in three days.
"I just think we knew collectively that it wasn't, it wasn't about one person each night. We needed different guys to step up, Ed(drin Bronson) stepping up, Ace (Asa Thomas) stepping up, Coop(er Bowser) and Chuck (Charles Johnston) holding it down. So, I mean, all the way down the roster, we just, we knew it was a whole team effort, and that's how you get these things done. It can't be, it can't be one or two guys every night," Tom House said after Furman's memorable championship win.
"I just think we knew collectively that it wasn't, it wasn't about one person each night. We needed different guys to step up, Ed(drin Bronson) stepping up, Ace (Asa Thomas) stepping up, Coop(er Bowser) and Chuck (Charles Johnston) holding it down. So, I mean, all the way down the roster, we just, we knew it was a whole team effort, and that's how you get these things done. It can't be, it can't be one or two guys every night," Tom House said after Furman's memorable championship win.
House also finished 3-for-3 from the line, hitting some clutch free throws over the weekend. House finished in double figures in two out of three tournament games, scoring 20 in the opener against Samford and 13 points in the title game. He also scored three points in Furman's 81-75 semifinal win over UNC Greensboro. For the weekend, House shot 10-for-19 from the field, including 6-for-8 from three-point land and a 10-of-10 effort from the charity stripe.
Bowser joined the all-tournament team alongside freshman point guard Alex Wilkins, who was also the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. Wilkins joins former standout JP Pegues (2023) as the latest Paladin point guard to take home the tournament's top individual award, as voted on by the league's media.
The native of Mattapan, MA., finished off a strong championship performance with 12 points on 4-of-12 shooting from the field and 2-for-8 from three-point land. Wilkins finished the tournament with 65 points, bringing his season total to 601 points, a new Furman record for points in a season by a freshman. In addition to his scoring, Wilkins also dished out two assists and had a pair of steals. One steal essentially sealed the win late for the Paladins: he intercepted a bad pass from Jaylen King and scored a two-handed dunk with 2:11 remaining, giving the Paladins a 72-61 lead.
ETSU got three strong contributions from its trio of double-figure scorers over the weekend. Brian Taylor II led the way with 16 points on 7-for-14 shooting from the field, including a 1-for-4 effort from the free-throw line. Taylor added one assist and two steals. Blake Barkley added 14 points and four rebounds, while Jaylen Smith added 10 off the bench. Barkley and Taylor were both SoCon First-Team All-Tournament selections, while Jaylen Smith made the second team.
Furman finished the night shooting 50.9% (27-of-53) from the field, including connecting on 10 of 26 three-point attempts (38.5%). Furman also finished off another strong performance from the free throw line, connecting at an 80% (12-for-15) clip.
The Bucs connected on 48.0% (24-of-50) of their shots from the field, including just 18.8% (3-for-16) from beyond the arc, while shooting just 55.6% (10-for-18) from the free throw line.
The Paladins also finished the championship game holding statistical advantages in total rebounds (36-24), total assists (12-5) free throws made (12-10), bench scoring (22-17), and second-chance points (11-2). ETSU finished the night with advantages in points from turnovers (19-14), points in the paint (32-30) and fast-break scoring (8-6).
As a team, Furman ranked last in both free throw shooting percentage and three-point field goal percentage. However, at the end of the season, the Paladins led the field in both of the aforementioned categories, shooting 83.6% (51-for-61) from the free throw line and 44.8% (30-for-67) over the course of the weekend.
How It Happened:
Furman and East Tennessee State started fast, with the Paladins taking a 12-8 lead by the first stoppage of action, using threes by Asa Thomas and Charles Johnston to off-set four buckets in the paint, with two of those coming on dunks by Blake Barkley and Cam Morris III, as the Bucs made a concerted effort to get the ball inside early.
Furman would increase its lead to six just after the first media timeout, as Tom House and Cole Bowser connected on threes to make it an 18-12 game. After a made free throw by Jaylen Smith, Alex Wilkins connected on a long three from the top of the key, giving the Paladins a brief eight-point lead, but the Bucs came right back, to cut the Paladin lead to one, at 23-22, on an Allen Strothers jumper off a Paladin turnover with 9:53 remaining in the half.
A 14-4 run, which was highlighted by eight points from Cooper Bowser and ending with a Tom House three, prompted an ETSU timeout, giving Furman a 37-27 lead with four minutes remaining in the half. The Paladins led 42-35 at the half. The Bucs trimmed the lead by three late in the opening frame but missed a big opportunity, failing to convert several makable shots down the stretch that could have further trimmed the margin and established real momentum.
Early in the second half, the Paladins took a 50-38 lead following three made foul shots from Tom House. However, Jaylen Smith and Brian Taylor II hit jumpers to cut the deficit back to within 10, at 50-42, with 13:59 remaining. But as has happened at so many different points during this particular tournament for Furman, Charles Johnston hit a timely right wing three to extend Furman's lead back out to double digits, at 53-42, with 13:54 left.
Each time the Bucs trimmed the game to single digits, Furman seemingly always had an answer in what is arguably their most complete performance of the season to date. Brian Taylor II's layup in transition brought ETSU within nine, at 53-44, but Asa Thomas, who hadn't scored in double figures in any of Furman's three tournament games despite averaging 12.5 PPG on the season, hit some massive threes during Furman's tournament run in Asheville.
In the game against UNCG, Thomas' three-pointer early in the second half gave the Paladins their first lead of the game, at 44-43, after trailing by 11 (38-27) at the half. Following Taylor's made layup, the Bucs deficit nine, but Thomas' three from the corner pushed the Paladin lead back to 12.
Blake Barkley then made a hook shot to get the Bucs to within 10, at 56-46. However, another of Furman's "unsung assassins" had an answer for Barkley's bucked in the paint, as Eddrin Bronson knocked down a three with 11:28 left to put Furman up 13. After Cole Bowser spiked an Isaiah Sutherland layup off the glass, you got the feeling that it might just be the Paladins' night. Bowser's "spike" was reminiscent of Cheeseburger Eddie's shot-blocking ways in the movie "The Longest Yard."
The Bowser block was originally called goaltending, but after Furman's coaching staff challenged the call, the ruling was overturned, the points were removed, and ETSU felt demoralized. On Furman's next trip down the floor, older brother Cooper Bowser got Cam Morris III on his hip again and put the ball off the glass for two more points, swelling Furman's lead to 61-46 with 10:25 left. An Alex Wilkins three-pointer with 8:34 remaining increased Furman's lead to 16, at 64-48.
Twice inside the final four minutes, the Bucs trimmed the Furman lead to nine, however, the Paladins made a play to make sure the Bucs got no closer. ETSU trimmed the deficit to nine for the second and final time with 2:46 remaining, when Brian Taylor II was fouled on a three, converting two of three foul shots, bringing ETSU within nine at 70-61.
However, after ETSU got a stop via a Maki Johnson block on a Bronson layup attempt, it appeared the Bucs might close the gap further. But Alex Wilkins stole a bad pass from Jaylen King intended for Johnson and went in for an uncontested two-handed dunk, putting Furman back up 11, at 72-61. That momentum change, which came with 2:11 left, proved decisive and was a dagger to ETSU's hopes of a return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2017.
I'll have complete tournament recap, as well as my overall thoughts and some mid-major madness superlatives to hand out later this week so be sure to check back for that.
All-Tournament Team
First team
Blake Barkley, ETSU
Brian Taylor II, ETSU
Cooper Bowser, Furman
Alex Wilkins, Furman (MOP)
Justin Neely, UNCG
Second team
Twice inside the final four minutes, the Bucs trimmed the Furman lead to nine, however, the Paladins made a play to make sure the Bucs got no closer. ETSU trimmed the deficit to nine for the second and final time with 2:46 remaining, when Brian Taylor II was fouled on a three, converting two of three foul shots, bringing ETSU within nine at 70-61.
However, after ETSU got a stop via a Maki Johnson block on a Bronson layup attempt, it appeared the Bucs might close the gap further. But Alex Wilkins stole a bad pass from Jaylen King intended for Johnson and went in for an uncontested two-handed dunk, putting Furman back up 11, at 72-61. That momentum change, which came with 2:11 left, proved decisive and was a dagger to ETSU's hopes of a return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2017.
I'll have complete tournament recap, as well as my overall thoughts and some mid-major madness superlatives to hand out later this week so be sure to check back for that.
All-Tournament Team
First team
Blake Barkley, ETSU
Brian Taylor II, ETSU
Cooper Bowser, Furman
Alex Wilkins, Furman (MOP)
Justin Neely, UNCG
Second team
Sola Adebisi, The Citadel
Jaylen Smith, ETSU
Tom House, Furman
KJ Younger, UNCG
Jadin Booth, Samford
Knight Commission Pinnacle Award (highest GPA on championship-winning team)
Tom House, Furman
KJ Younger, UNCG
Jadin Booth, Samford
Knight Commission Pinnacle Award (highest GPA on championship-winning team)
Ben Vander Wal, Furman
2026 Ingles Southern Conference Men's Basketball Championship
2026 Ingles Southern Conference Men's Basketball Championship
Friday, March 6 (ESPN+/Nexstar)
Game 1 - (9) The Citadel 88, (8) Chattanooga 85
Game 2 - (7) UNCG 84, (10) VMI 70
Saturday, March 7 (ESPN+/SCETV)
Game 3 - (1) ETSU 83, (9) The Citadel 76
Game 4 - (7) UNCG 75, (2) Wofford 72
Game 5 - (6) Furman 86, (3) Samford 81
Game 6 - (5) Western Carolina 77, (4) Mercer 73
Sunday, March 8 (ESPNU)
Game 7 - (1) ETSU 69, (5) Western Carolina 67
Game 8 - (6) Furman 81, (7) UNCG 75
Monday, March 9 (ESPN)
(6) Furman 76, (1) ETSU 61
Game 1 - (9) The Citadel 88, (8) Chattanooga 85
Game 2 - (7) UNCG 84, (10) VMI 70
Saturday, March 7 (ESPN+/SCETV)
Game 3 - (1) ETSU 83, (9) The Citadel 76
Game 4 - (7) UNCG 75, (2) Wofford 72
Game 5 - (6) Furman 86, (3) Samford 81
Game 6 - (5) Western Carolina 77, (4) Mercer 73
Sunday, March 8 (ESPNU)
Game 7 - (1) ETSU 69, (5) Western Carolina 67
Game 8 - (6) Furman 81, (7) UNCG 75
Monday, March 9 (ESPN)
(6) Furman 76, (1) ETSU 61
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