High Point 97, Furman 91
--Rob Martin scored led five Panthers players in double figures with 22 points, as High Point forced 22 Furman turnovers, which led to a 25-3 advantage in points from turnovers and the Panthers coasted to a 26-point, 97-61, win in the season opener at the Field of 68's Opening Day Marathon at the Rock Hill Sports and Events Center.
It was the first win for new head coach Flynn Clayburn, who had been part of a High Point program as an assistant under former head coach Alan Huss and helped High Point win 56 combined games over the past two campaigns, including an NCAA Tournament berth as a part of 29 wins last season.
For Furman, it was its first season-opening loss under head coach Bob Richey, who fell to 8-1 in season openers leading the Paladins, and it was also the first season-opening defeat since the 2016-17 season opener at Presbyterian, which saw the Paladins fall 73-71 at the Templeton Center on that particular occasion.
Furman, which trailed by as many as 32 points in the second half, as was led by Charles Johnston's 16 points and 12 rebounds, as the junior center from Sydney, Australia led four Paladins in double figures in the losing effort.
Furman's 22 turnovers against High Point were its most since turning it over 22 times in a 117-110 double-overtime loss to Tulane on Dec. 14, 2023. It ranks as the most turnovers for a Furman team in regulation since Dec. 19, 2020, when the Paladins turned it over 23 times in an 87-71 loss at Winthrop.
In fact, it 262 games under Bob Richey prior to Monday night's season opener, the Paladins had only had seven games in which they turned it over 20 or more times, finishing 2-5 in those games. The only two wins came against South Carolina State (Dec. 3, 2022) and USC Upstate (Nov. 28, 2020). Furman's 22 turnovers in regulation was bested only once in Richey's tenure as head coach, and it ironically came in Rock Hill, as the Paladins finished with 23 turnovers in an 87-71 loss at Winthrop on Dec. 19, 2020.
No. 18 Tennessee 76, Mercer 61
--Tennessee freshman guard Nate Ament scored 18 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the field, while the Vols defense managed to hold visiting Mercer to just 29.9% (20-of-67) shooting for the game in posting a 76-61 win before a crowd of 18,559 fans on-hand at Thompson-Boling Arena to open the 2024-25 season.
JP Estrella was the only other Bears player in double figures, as he added 12 points off the bench on 6-of-10 shooting from the field.
The Bears were solid in defeat, but couldn't find an offensive rhythm the entire night, thanks in large part to the Vols stellar defense.
Okojie finished his evening by connecting on 3-of-13 shots from the field and was 1-of-2 from long-range and a perfect 8-for-8 from the charity stripe and also added four rebounds, two assists and a steal in 34 minutes of actions.
He was one of three Bears to finish the night in double figures, with Boston College transfer Armanti Migthy posting 14 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field and added five boards and two blocks in the setback. Rounding out the Bears to find their way into double figures was Wagner transfer guard Zaire Williams, who added 10.
Both teams struggled offensively from the outset, however, Tennessee was able to rattle off a 21-6 run over a 8:50 stretch to take control of the game, assuming a 25-14 lead following an Ethan Burg layup following a JP Estrella steal. The Vols would eventually take what was a 33-21 lead into the halftime locker room.
The Vols shot 51.6% from the field in the opening half of play, while holding the visitors from Macon to just over 21% shooting from the field in the opening 20 minutes of basketball.
In the second half, the Vols continued to play strong defense, holding the Bears without a field goal for a little over four minutes, as the Bears went 0-of-5 from the field during that stretch, and a 7-0 run over a 1:20 stretch saw the Vols eventually run their advantage to 19, at 46-27.
Tennessee's lead would grow as large as 23 points (58-35) in the second half before Mercer began to chip away a bit, cutting the Vols lead to 62-49 following a Quinton Perkins II three-pointer with 5:40 remaining, but that would be as close as the Bears would get, as Tennessee held on for the comfortable win to open the 2025-26 season.
Mercer returns to action on Wednesday night, hosting LaGrange. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. inside the friendly confines of Hawkins Arena.
Cincinnati 94, Western Carolina 63
CINCINNATI, OH--Western Carolina opened its 2025-26 season in a big-time venue to start year two under head coach Tim Craft, and it was a tough way to open the campaign, as Cincinnati was able to claim a 94-63 win in what was the fifth all-time meeting between the two programs and the first time since the 2017-18 season. The latest victory saw the Bearcats remain perfect in the series against the Catamounts, improving to 5-0 inside the friendly confines of Fifth-Third Bank Arena.
The Bearcats, who are led by former UNCG legendary head coach Wes Miller, as four players ended the night in double figures, including three players that ended up with 18 points to lead the way for a Cincinnati team predicted to finish in the middle of the pack in the 16-team Big 12 Conference and looking to make its first NCAA Tournament appearance under the direction of its fifth-year head coach.
Freshman forward Shon Abaev, senior forward Baba Miller and sophomore center Moustapha Thiam all finished the game with 18 points, while 6-6 freshman wing Jordi Rodriguez added 10 points off the bench to help a well-rounded Cincinnati offensive attack, which finished the night connecting at a 54.2% clip (32-of-59), including a 35.7% (10-of-28) from three-point range.
Baba Miller and Jordi Rodriguez are the latest Spaniards to excel on a Wes Miller coached team, who while at UNCG, brought in dynamic shooting guard Francis Alonso and went on to become that program's most-prolific perimeter shooter, and that would end up leading to a 2017-18 SoCon Tournament crown. Miller is hoping his latest couple of Spaniards mentioned above can lead the Bearcats back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019.
Baba Miller posted a double-double of 18 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Bearcats, as he connected on 7-of-9 shots from the field and was 4-for-6 from the line, while also issuing out one assist in the win. Thomas is the lone returning starter for the Bearcats from a year ago, as he finished 3-for-11 shooting from the field and 2-of-5 from the charity stripe to share team scoring honors with his two teammates.
Western Carolina's offensive efforts were led by Cord Stansberry, who finished with a game-high 23 points on 9-of-19 shooting from the field, including a 4-for-9 effort from three-point range, as he would lead a Catamounts team that featured three players in double figures in what was a tough shooting night against the bigger, more talented Bearcats.
Stansberry, whose 23 points were just one off his career-high, was joined in double figures by newcomer Julien Soumaoro (13 pts) and preseason all-conference selection forward Marcus Kell (12 pts, 9 rebs) finished just one rebound shy of a double-double, as he continued off his strong close to the 2024-25 season, which saw him close out the 2024-25 season with 12-straight games in double figures.
The Bearcats started the game as you might expect for a major program steeped in tradition, beginning its 125th season of basketball by racing to a 25-8 first half lead a little over seven minutes into the contest, as Keyshaun Tillery capped an 11-0 spurt to bring the crowd of 9,126 fans on-hand at Fifth-Third Bank Arena to a loud collective roar.
The Catamounts could get no closer than 14 points for the remainder of the opening half, and the Bearcats led by as many as 28 (48-20) in the opening half before settling on a 21-point (49-28) advantage at the half.
After Cincinnati opened the second half on a 6-0 run to stretch the lead back to 28, at 56-28, the Catamounts would eventually trim the lead back to 19 points, on back-to-back buckets from Kell Stansberry, as the former connected on an three and the latter on a two-point shot in the paint, which saw the Catamounts cut the deficit to 64-45 with 10:35 left. It would be the only time the Catamounts would cut the deficit inside 20 points in the second half.
For the game, the Catamounts finished shooting the ball at a 35.9% (23-of-64) clip for the game, and the Catamounts were soundly outmatched in several key categories, including: points off turnovers (26-13), bench scoring (26-10) and fast-break points (16-0). The Catamounts turned the ball over 22 times in the game and shot just 33.3% (9-for-27) from three-point range. The Catamounts did hold a slight 37-36 advantage on the glass.
Western Carolina returns to action for a 2 p.m. contest Saturday afternoon against No. 6 Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The Blue Devils opened their season with a 75-60 win over Texas in Charlotte at the Spectrum Center Tuesday night to notch their 26th-straight season-opening win. Saturday's game will open up Duke's 2025-26 season at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
George Mason 70, Wofford 46 (Nov. 3, 2025)
George Mason ended 2024 SoCon champion Samford's season in the NIT last March at EagleBank Arena, and issued defending SoCon Tournament champion Wofford and its rookie head coach Kevin Giltner a harsh verdict in the Terriers 2025-26 opener, as the 2024-25 Atlantic 10 regular-season co-champion Patriots claimed a 70-46 win in the same venue.
The Patriots were led by three in double figures, with junior guard Kory Mincy coming off the bench to deliver a game-high 18 points, as the former Presbyterian guard, who was one of three players in double figures (10 pts vs. Wofford in 2024-25) for the Blue Hose last season in helping PC stun Wofford 71-68 at the Templeton Center, continued a theme of playing well against the Terriers, as he would lead the Patriots in scoring in the contest, leading all scorers with 18 points off the bench for George Mason.
Mincy finished the night by connecting on 6-of-9 shots from the field, as he did most of his damage from three-point range in the game, connecting on 4-of-5 shots from three-point range. In addition to his 18 points, Mincy also dished out six of the team's 12 assists in the win.
Mincy would be joined in double figures in the game by former Samford big man Riley Allenspach, who finished the night with 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting from the field and added four boards, while senior guard Masai Troutman rounded out the Patriots players in double figures with 10 point and six rebounds in 29 minutes of action.
The Terriers would finish the evening with just one player able to scratch double figures, as Nils Machowski ended the opening night with 11 points to lead Wofford. Machowski went 4-for-10 from the field and was 2-for-6 from three-point range, while adding seven rebounds and a steal.
The Patriots finished the night shooting a solid 47.3% () from the field and held a 34-18 advantage in the points in the paint category, while George Mason took advantage of Wofford's youthful mistakes, turning 16 Wofford miscues into a 17-2 advantage in points off turnovers.
After trailing by just seven (29-22) at the break, the Terriers would be vastly overmatched in the second half, with George Mason able to outscore the Terriers by 17 (41-24).
Points were tough to come by for the entire night for Wofford, thanks in large part to the stifling defense played by George Mason, which held the Terriers to just 30% (15-of-50) shooting for the game, including just 20.7% (6-of-29) from three-point land.
Wofford returns to action Saturday, when it hosts Milwaukee in a 2 p.m. contest at the Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium.
Kansas State 93, UNC Greensboro 64 (Nov. 4, 2025)
MANHATTAN, KS--It was UNCG that came out and stunned Kansas State and took as much as a 10-point lead (22-12) in the opening half and held a surprising 34-33 lead at the half, however, it would be Kansas State who would ultimately have the last laugh, outscoring the Spartans by 30 (60-30) in the second half to cruise to a 93-64 win in the 2025-26 season opener for both teams before 7,765 fans on-hand at the Bramlage Coliseum.
The loss, which saw the Spartans fall to 0-1 to open the 2025-26 season, marked the first time the Spartans lost a season-opener since the 2017-18 season, when UNCG dropped a 60-48 contest to Virginia.
Three Wildcats found their way into double figures, with PJ Haggerty leading the way with 27 points, while Nate Johnson added 22 and junior guard Abdi Bashir Jr. added all 16 of his points to the cause in the second half.
Haggerty, who transferred in from the University of Memphis during the off-season, would pace the Wildcats in scoring despite getting off to a bit of a slow start in the contest, as he connected on 10-of-20 shots from the field and was 1-of-4 from three-point range, as well as being a near-perfect 6-for-7 at the charity stripe. Haggerty also added three assists, a block and a steal to the cause, while ripping down a pair of rebounds in the contest.
Nate Johnson nearly put together a triple-double effort, finishing with nine rebounds and nine assists to go with his 22 points. Johnson was hot all night, connecting on 8-of-11 shots from the field, including going 6-for-7 from three-point land in the win.
The Spartans also finished with three players in double figures, as Mike Jones' newly assembled roster of players saw both positives and plenty of negatives emerge in the season opener. Justin Neely led the way with 15 points for UNCG, while French guard Lillian Marville added 14 points in his first game with the program. Lithuanian forward and one of the few holdovers, Domas Kauzonas, rounded out the Spartans in double figures, adding 10 points, six rebounds, two blocks and an assist.
Neely, who transferred into UNCG from UAlbany, scored his 15 points on a 5-for-9 shooting effort from three-point land and connected on his only three attempt of the night, while finishing 4-of-6 from the line to equal his team-leading scoring performance. Neely also added nine rebounds to just miss a double-double, while adding five assists and three steals to complete his well-rounded debut for the Spartans.
True freshman guard KJ Younger turned in a solid effort in 29 minutes of work in his first-ever collegiate game, adding nine points, four steals, and two boards in the season-opening road loss.
In the opening half of play, the Spartans jumped out to a 22-12 lead, which would cap a 14-4 run, as a three-pointer by Antwann Jones off a feed from Neely staked the Spartans to their biggest lead of the night with 8:48 remaining in the opening half of play.
However, a 21-12 run by the Wildcats to close the half saw Kansas State enter the halftime locker room with all the momentum, despite trailing by a point.
The Wildcats showcased an offensive onslaught in the second half of basketball, however, as K-State would score 15 points before the first media timeout of the second half, picking up the pace, and it was Bashir three-pointer that broke a 40-40 tie and gave K-State a lead they wouldn't relinquish the rest of the night. A layup by Haggerty and a three by freshman wing Andrej Kostic saw the Wildcats head over to coach Jerome Tang at the first media timeout of the second half, holding what was a 48-42 lead.
After Khamari McGriff's dunk in transition gave the Wildcats a 12-point, 55-43, lead with 13:32 left, Kauzonas answered with a jumper at the 13:05 mark to cut the K-State lead back to 10, at 55-45. At that point, K-State would seize control of the game for the remainder of the night, and it would prove to be the a decisive juncture of the game, as the Wildcats put together a 15-0 run to take a 70-45 lead with 9:39 remaining following a three-pointer by Nate Johnson. The K-State run of 15-straight points came on five consecutive made threes to push the lead to 25.
K-State would push its lead to as much as 32 points a little over six minutes later, as Haggerty converted a made layup in the paint, giving the Wildcats its biggest lead of the night, at 89-57, with 3:12 remaining. The Wildcats closed out the win with a strong second half, scoring 60 second-half points for just the 11th time in program history.
For the game, K-State connected on 50.7% (34-of-67) shots from the field, including blistering the nets at a 59.5% (22-of-37) in the second half alone to dominate the game. Even more impressive was K-State's 52% shooting effort from three-point range in the game, as the Wildcats made 14 of their 27 long-range efforts, including a blistering 11-for-17 effort in the second half.
Meanwhile, UNCG finished the game shooting at just a 37.7% (23-of-61) clip, including just a 30.0% (6-of-20) shooting effort from three-point land.
In terms of specialty stats, the Wildcats owned advantages in the following stat categories: points in the paint (34-28), points off turnovers (21-17), fast-break points (26-8), bench scoring (21-10), second-chance points (14-10), total rebounds (41-32) and assists (22-15).
UNCG returns to the hardwood on Saturday, hosting nearby rival Elon in a 4 p.m. EST contest at UNCG's on-campus facility, Fleming Gym.
Tulane 85, Samford 72 (Nov. 3, 2025)
NEW ORLEANS, LA--The Lennie Acuff officially got underway Monday night, with Samford playing well at times against its American Athletic Conference competition on the road, however, ultimately the Tulane would prevail on its home floor to open the season, posting an 85-72 win thanks to a late run down the stretch by the Green Wave.
The loss sees Samford, which was projected third in the preseason in the SoCon, open the campaign with an 0-1 mark.
The opening minutes of the game were tense, and Samford would assume the 10-6 lead with Keaton Norris and Dylan Faulkner leading the team early on. Jadin Booth showed why he was such a coveted transfer, as the graduate guard poured in 19 of the team's 33 first-half points, as the the Bulldogs entered the halftime locker room facing what was a 43-33 deficit.
Booth, a graduate transfer from Florida Southern, finished his night with 34 points on 10-of-20 shooting from the floor, including tying a program record with nine made three-pointers.
It was Booth and the Bulldogs that would open the second half in strong fashion, as he connected on 4-of-7 from three-point land in the second half, remaining hot from three-point land, and an 8-0 run capped by a Will Shaver dunk allowed the Bulldogs to get within a three-pointer of tying the game, at 56-53, with just under 14 minutes remaining in the second half.
A 16-7 spurt by the Green Wave, which was capped by a Scotty Middleton three-pointer, allowed Tulane to push the lead back to double digits, at 72-60, with 8:15 remaining. After a three-pointer by Keaton Norris got the deficit back to nine shortly thereafter, Tulane extended the lead to 18 twice inside the final four minutes to close out the win.
Booth was 10-of-20 from the field and 9-of-17 from three-point range. The Florida Southern transfer also added three rebounds, two assists and a steal. He was a perfect 5-for-5 from the line.
Dylan Faulkner and Keaton Norris rounded out the Bulldogs in double figures, with 16 and 10 points, respectively.
Tulane placed four in double figures, with former VMI guard Asher Woods finishing with 24 points, while Curtis Williams Jr added 22. Rowan Brumbaugh and Tyler Ringold added 12 and 10 points, respectively, to round out the double-figure scorers for the Green Wave. Tulane shot a blistering 58.5% (31-of-53) for the game, which included a 52.4% from three-point land (11-for-21).
Samford shot just 41.0% (25-of-61) for the game, which included just a 38.7% (12-of-31) clip from three-point range.
Non-Division I games from Week 1
VMI 122, Johnson and Wales 58 (Nov. 3, 2025)
The Citadel 105, Erskine 61 (Nov. 3, 2025)
Chattanooga 92, Union 39 (Nov. 3, 2025)
ETSU 102, Converse 50 (Nov. 4, 2025)
Mercer 101, LaGrange 62 (Nov. 5, 2025)
Boston College 76, The Citadel 47 (Nov. 5, 2025)
The Eagles would then post an identical 38 points in the second half, while holding the Bulldogs to one less point than they had in the opening 20 minutes of basketball, as Boston College ensured that this time around, it wouldn't have to sweat out a close win over the Bulldogs, after BC posted single digit wins of nine and four points, respectively, over the previous two seasons.
After Sola Adebisi and Christian Moore connected on a pair of threes to get the Bulldogs out to that nine-point lead early in the game, the Eagles responded with a 14-0 to completely shift the momentum of the game and take a 14-point, 38-24, lead into half. The Eagles held the Bulldogs scoreless for over five minutes, and turned a the nine-point deficit into a five-point lead following a 14-0 run was capped by a Boden Kapke layup with 8:31 remaining in the opening half. A Caleb Steger triple would extend the BC lead to eight shortly thereafter.
In the second half, Aiden Shaw brought the crowd to its feet on a stuff off an alley-oop feed from Chase Forte, extending BC's lead to 22, at 46-24, at the 15:55 mark of the second half, and the rout was officially on.
The Bulldogs couldn't find their shooting touch the entire night, thanks to BC's strong effort on the defensive end of the floor, as the Bulldogs finished the game connecting on just 30.2% (16-of-53) from the field and a meager 25% (5-of-20) from three-point range. The Bulldogs did manage to limit the Eagles ton just five made threes in the game, however.
St. Mary's 87, Chattanooga 66 (Nov. 7, 2025)
MORAGA, CA--Chattanooga suffered its first loss since the NIT run last season, as the Mocs fell on the road by 21 points, 87-66, to one of the top mid-major programs in the nation, in the St. Mary's Gaels.
The loss saw the Mocs even their record to 1-1 on the young season, while the Gaels improved to 2-0, and won for the second-straight season over Chattanooga in an early-season matchup.
Both teams started the game slow, combining for just four total points over the first four minutes of the game. An early Tate Darner three-pointer would continue to keep the Mocs close on the scoreboard, as the true freshman's triple made it a 14-12 game with 13:52 remaining in the opening half.
The Gaels, however, answered with an 11-3 run, which started with a Paulius Murauskas jumper at the 13:28 mark and ended with a Mikey Lewis three-pointer in transition, as the Gaels went ahead by 10, at 25-15, with 10 minutes remaining in the opening half of play.
The Mocs, who were playing without injured Collin Mulholland, couldn't matchup with St. Mary's size underneath the basket, and that would prove to be a problem for a majority of the game. Chattanooga went to the half facing a 15-point deficit, at 48-33.
In the second half, the Mocs were able to pull within 12 early on in the frame, as Teddy Washington Jr. finished at the rim, cutting the Gaels' lead to just 12, at 52-40, with 16:43 remaining. However, a quick 6-0 spurt by Saint Mary's, which was highlighted by a three-point play the old-fashioned way from Mikey Lewis and finished with a conventional three on the next time down the floor by Lewis, restored the comfortable cushion on the scoreboard for the Gaels, at 58-40, with 15:51 remaining.
The Mocs would again charge back, as this time they got as close as 11 points when Bellarmine transfer Billy Smith connected on a three with 12:08 remaining, making it a 63-52 Mocs deficit. That would remain the deficit as the two teams headed to their respective benches for the second media timeout of the second half.
But over the final 11 minutes of the game, the Gaels would take control of the game once and for all, extending the lead out to as much as 23 points following a Mantas Juzenas three, at 87-64, with 1:11 remaining. However, the Mocs would score the final points of the game on a Makai Richards dunk with 16 seconds remaining, setting the final score, at 87-66.
The Gaels would be led in the contest by Lewis' 28 points, as he connected on 7-of-13 from the field, which included a 4-for-6 effort from three-point land. He was also a perfect 10-for-10 from the line. Lewis added four rebounds, five assists and three steals to the cause.
Paulius Murauskas added 22 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the field and a perfect 8-for-8 from the charity stripe, while posting eight boards and dished out five helpers.
Rounding out the Gaels players in double figures was Andrew McKeever, who added 16 points, eight rebounds, one assist, one block and one steal.
Chattanooga placed three in double figures, as Teddy Washington Jr. led the Mocs with 13 points, four rebounds and a pair of assists. He connected on 6-of-15 shots from the field, but went 0-for-5 from three-point range in the contest. He also connected on 1-of-2 shots from the charity stripe.
Washington was joined in double figures by both guard Billy Smith and Jordan Frison, who added 11 and 10 points, respectively, in the setback.
For the game, the Gaels shot a blistering 57.8% (26-of-45) from the field, which included a 50% (8-for-16) effort from three-point range. St Mary's was most impressive from the charity stripe, however, as the Gaels connected on 27-of-29 attempts (93.1%) for the game.
Chattanooga finished the contest connecting on 42.3% (22-of-52) of its shots from the field, including just 33.3% (7-of-21) from three-point range. The Mocs, who were one of the strongest free throw shooting clubs in the nation last season, finished a solid 78.9 from the line against the Gaels, connecting on 15-of-19 foul shots.
Troy 64, Furman 61 (Nov. 7, 2025)
GREENVILLE, S.C.—Cooper Campbell scored 21 points to lead three Troy players in double figures, as the Trojans led by as many as 15 points early in the second half, but had to hold off Furman for a 64-61 win before 2,207 fans on-hand Friday night at the newly refurbished Timmons Arena.
The loss sees the Paladins drop to 0-2 overall, while Troy improves to 2-0 with a pair of wins over teams that won 24 and 25 games last season, respectively, in Kent State and Furman.
Campbell finished his night by connecting on 8-for-13 from the field, including 5-of-9 from three-point range, while posting five rebounds, three assists and three steals. Campbell was joined in double figures by both preseason All-Sun Belt selection Thomas Dowd, who posted 11 points, six rebounds and three blocks, while teammate Victor Valdes finished the night with 11 points and five boards.
Like Troy, Furman was highlighted by three players in double figures, with talented freshman Alex Wilkins able to overcome four turnovers in the opening 10 minutes to score a team-leading 16 points and added eight assists, including not turning the ball over for the final 30 minutes to help the Paladins get back into the game and nearly pull off the come-from-behind win.
Wilkins finished 6-of-15 shooting from the field, while included a 1-for-3 effort from three-point range and was a perfect 3-for-3 from the charity stripe. Along with his eight assists, Wilkins also added two rebounds to go with his other totals.
Eddrin Bronson added 14 points and added a pair of steals off the bench for the Paladins, while Cooper Bowser rounded out the double-figure scorers with 10 points, eight rebounds, one steal and one block. Charles Johnston led the Paladins with 10 rebounds, while Asa Thomas added nine points off the bench.
The Trojans finished the night connecting on 41.1% (23-of-56) from the field and 30% (9-for-30) from three-point land, while Furman finished the game connecting on 39.3% (22-of-56) from the field and 37.5% (9-of-24) from three-point land. Troy connected at a 69.2% (9-of-13) from the free throw line, while Furman was 66.7% (8-of-12) from the charity stripe for the game.
Troy finished the contest with advantages in points from turnovers (22-10), points in the paint (28-26), and fast-break points (16-9). The Paladins finished holding advantages in bench scoring (26-10), total rebounds (36-33), second-chance points (9-7) and total assists (13-10).
Troy came out and held Furman scoreless on its first five possessions, and much like it did against Kent State, when it took a 16-3 lead. Against the Paladins, Troy assumed a 15-3 lead.
Led by Alex Wilkins, Furman would put together a 17-5 run to get back to within a possession at 23-20 on a three-point play the old fashioned way midway through the half, however, the Trojans closed the half on a 16-3 run to take a 36-23 lead into the halftime locker room.
The Trojans scored 18 of their 36 points off Furman's 13 first-half turnovers, as well as shooting 50% (14-of-28) from the field in the opening half to build a 13-point lead.
In the second half, Thomas Dowd scored on a strong two-handed stuff and a free throw, while Cooper Campbell knocked down one of his five threes of the night to give the Trojans their biggest lead of the game and spark the Trojans to a strong start to the second half with a 42-27 lead with 16:57 remaining.
A 15-2 run by Furman, which started with an alley-oop slam off a feed from Alex Wilkins and ended with a three pointer from the right elbow off another Wilkins helper, helped the Paladins slice Troy's lead to four, at 44-40, with 11:25 left. A Wilkins jumper in the paint following a rebound off his own miss got Furman even closer on its next possession, at 44-42, with 8:50 remaining.
As is did for much of the night when the Paladins drew close on the scoreboard, the Trojans seemingly always had an answer, and an Austin Cross triple six seconds later gave Troy just enough breathing room, extending its advantage back to five, at 47-42.
Campbell would connect on another three four minutes later to keep Troy's lead at five, despite the Trojans best efforts, they couldn't shake loose of the hard-charging Paladins. A Bronson corner three off a feed from Tom House got Furman to within two with 4:25 left, and following a missed hook shot by Theo Seng in the paint, Wilkins tossed another beautiful lob to Bowser, who slammed it with authority, tying the game, 55-55, with 3:32 left.
Furman had three shots at taking the lead, missing a pair of layups in the paint and pretty good look at a three from Tom House allowed the game to remain tied. It appeared Furman might get a fourth chance to take the lead, however, after Charles Johnston rebounded a missed Cooper Campell three, Campbell stepped in front of Bowser's outlet pass and converted a layup off the steal to put the Trojans back up two, at 57-55, with 1:19 remaining.
Following a Bronson missed 15-footer, Victor Valdes hit a dagger three from the top of the key to give the Trojans 60-55 lead with 31 seconds left.
Furman's Asa Thomas and Charles Johnston connected on a pair of threes in the final 12.1 seconds, but Theo Seng and Thomas Dowd went 4-for-4 from the line to close out the 64-61 road win.
VMI 78, Southern Indiana 74 (Nov. 7, 2025)
EVANSVILLE, IN--Playing in its first road game of the 2025-26 season, VMI improved to 2-0 and despite being without preseason SoCon Player of the Year, Rickey Bradley Jr., for a second-straight game due to injury, the Keydets found away to come up with an impressive 78-74 road win over Southern Indiana at Liberty Arena in what was the home opener for USI. The win would see the Keydets improve to 2-0 on the young season, while the Screaming Eagles fell to 0-2.
Thanks to 32 points from TJ Johnson, which ultimately ended up landing him SoCon Player of the Week honors, the Keydets didn't miss Bradley as much as they might have, thanks to Johnson's strong performance. Not only did he get it done scoring-wise, but the junior forward also got it done on the glass, as he established a new career-high with 14 rebounds in the contest. It was his second-straight double-double to open the new season.
Johnson finished off his evening by connecting on 11-of-20 shots from the field, including going 2-for-9 from three-point range. He was also a perfect 8-for-8 from the charity stripe in the VMI and added three assists and three steals to his overall totals.
In addition to Johnson's heroics for the Keydets, it was also a solid performance for Tan Yildizoglu, who finished out his night with 12 points, five assists and a steal. He ended the night going 3-for-9 from the field, which included a 2-for-4 effort from three-point land. Cal Liston delivered a strong performance off VMI's bench, adding nine points on 3-for-4 shooting from the field, as he was a perfect 3-for-3 from three-point range. Jaylen Pazon also narrowly missed double figures with nine.
Ismail Habib would lead three Screaming Eagles in double figures, as he poured in 26 points on 9-for-20 shooting from the field and 3-of-11 from three-point land. Habib also posted a 5-for-6 effort from the charity stripe, while adding five rebounds and three assists to his overall totals.
Habib was joined in double figures by both Kaden Brown, who added 14 points, while Trey Thomas finished his evening with 12.
The game was close throughout, with neither team able to gain much separation on the scoreboard from the other and with six minutes remaining in the opening half of basketball, the two teams were tied, 23-23.
Buoyed by a vocal crowd in its home opener, the Screaming Eagles would make a little run over the final portion of the frame, assuming a 10-point lead when Brown knocked down 15-foot jumper with 1:24 left in the half, giving the Screaming Eagles a 36-26 lead. A pair of buckets by Johnson on a layup and jumper, which was preceded by a Devin Curtis free throw for Southern Indiana, saw the Keydets trim the deficit to just seven, at 37-30, by the time the halftime buzzer sounded.
The Keydets started to dig themselves out of that late first-half funk in the early portions of the second half, tying the game, 48-48, on one of Liston's three triples with 13:47 remaining. The Screaming Eagles responded with a 10-2 run over the next three-and-a-half minutes to assume what was a 58-50 lead after Habib buried a three with 10:15 remaining.
VMI's response was fashioning a 10-2 run of its own, which started with a three-pointer from freshman guard Mario Tatum Jr. and ended with a pair of free throws from Tan Yildizoglu, which tied the game, 60-60, with 6:29 remaining.
With the game tied once again, 69-69, with just 65 seconds remaining, it was a Yildizoglu's three that might have been the biggest of the night, giving the Keydets a 72-69 lead. After a steal by AJ Clark, the Screaming Eagles were forced to foul Johnson, who connected on a pair of foul shots to increase the VMI lead to five. The Screaming Eagles would cut the VMI lead to two points on a pair of occasions inside the final minute but could never draw even or take the lead again, as VMI held on for a huge early-season road win.
Samford 82, South Carolina State 72 (Nov.7, 2025)
HOMEWOOD, AL--Samford officially opened its 2025-26 season at the Pete Hanna Center in style, fighting hard to come away with an 82-72 win over South Carolina State in what also be the first win for Lennie Acuff as the head coach of the Bulldogs.
The hometown Bulldogs have had some good battles with South Carolina State in recent seasons, with Samford going to Orangeburg last season and coming away with what was an 88-81 win. Two years ago, Samford claimed an 89-72 win and in the 2022-23 season, South Carolina State shocked Samford by handing the Bulldogs a 62-61 setback in Orangeburg.
With only one real game that was a double-digit game for most of the evening, which was Samford's 17-point win over SC State during its 2023-24 championship season, it was little surprise that South Carolina State would prove to be such a tough out, and that was even despite it being the first chance for the home Samford crowd to be able to see the new head coach Lennie Acuff coach a game in person for the Bulldogs.
Samford jumped out to the early lead, as Jadin Booth canned a pair of quick triples to get the hometown Bulldogs going and that would get the crowd into it at the Pete early in the game, as Booth's triples gave Samford an early 11-7 lead.
Booth dominated the scoring with 34 in the opener against Tulane and was one of only six Samford players to score in the season-opening road loss to the Green Wave. However, in this outing Booth was one of eight Bulldogs players to score in the opening 20 minutes, as Samford's offensive effort was much more balanced than it had been at Devlin Field House in the opener at Tulane.
But as is the case with young basketball teams trying to gel early in the season under a new head coach, there is always a certain amount of adversity to deal with. That would emerge in the form of a nine-minute scoring drought, allowing and even allowed South Carolina State to take a first-half lead when James Morrow connected on a jumper to make it a 24-22 contest with 10:23 remaining in the opening half.
The visitors from Orangeburg would see Samford draw even on a pair of free throws by Cade Norris, but an Owen Bronston Jr. four-point play after he was fouled on a made three at the nine minute mark of the opening frame saw SC State re-take the lead at 28-24, as South Carolina State wouldn't relinquish the advantage for the remainder of the half, taking a 39-37 lead to the break. Despite the scoring drought, Samford was able to remain in the game with some stellar work at the charity stripe, as Samford knocked down 11-of-16 charity shots in the first half to hang in the game.
Samford came out and made some adjustments on both ends in the second half, looking like a much sharper team, connecting at a 52% clip in the second stanza, while holding the visiting Bulldogs to just 42% over the latter 20 minutes of basketball. A Will Shaver layup a little less than eight minutes into the second half helped Samford re-take the lead, at 55-53, and it would be a lead the hometown Bulldogs would maintain for the remainder of the game.
Samford's lead would grow as large as 11 points in the second half following a Dylan Faulkner tip-in off a long missed three-pointer, as the Bulldogs would enjoy their largest lead of the night at 70-59 with just 4:47 remaining.
SC State could only get as close as five the rest of the evening, after a James Morrow layup concluded a 6-0 scoring run from SC State to make it a 70-65 game with 3:18 remaining. However, a 10-5 spurt all but put the game out of reach for Samford, as a Jadin Booth free throw gave the hometown Bulldogs a double-digit lead once again, at 80-70, with just 41 seconds remaining, and the margin would remain 10 as Samford closed out win No. 1 of the 2025-26, 82-72, over SC State.
Just as he had done in the season opener against, Jadin Booth led the way with 26 points and connected on 6-of-12 shots from the field, including having gone 5-for-10 from three-point land in the win. He was also an impressive 9-of-10 from charity stripe and added six boards and three steals to the Samford cause.
Dylan Faulkner wasn't too far behind, adding 19 on 8-of-13 shooting from the field, while both Keaton Norris and Jaxson Pollard rounded out the double-figure scorers with 11 and 10 points apiece, respectively.
SC State got 22 points and seven rebounds off the bench from James Morrow, and he was joined in double figures scoring-wise by Owen Bronston Jr. and Jayden Johnson, who added 16 and 13 points, respectively, to round out the Bulldogs' double figure scorers.
Presbyterian 68, East Tennessee State 64 (Nov. 8, 2025)
CLINTON, S.C.--Presbyterian scored 11 of the final 15 points of the game and 19 of the final 27, as the Blue Hose held off the Bucs, 68-64, in a mild upset Saturday night at the Templeton Center.
With the win, the Blue Hose improved to 2-1 on the season, while ETSU fell to 1-1 on the young season. The win over the Bucs marked the second SoCon opponent in as many seasons that the Blue Hose have defeated on the home hardwood, as PC also took down Wofford () at the Templeton Center just last season.
The Bucs started slow, and PC took advantage, getting out of the gates quickly to take a 14-2 lead with 5:28 gone in the game, however, the Bucs responded to outscore PC 24-11 over the remainder of the half, getting buckets from seven different players to taking their first lead of the game following a Blake Barkley jumper with four seconds remaining in the half, giving ETSU the 26-25 halftime lead, which also happened to be their first lead of the night. It was part of a 13-2 run that the Bucs ended the half on.
In the second half, the visitors from Johnson City would stretch their lead to as much as five when Allen Strothers hit a jumper just 70 seconds into the second half. Carl Parrish answered for the Blue Hose with back-to-back triples to but the Blue Hose back on top and another three-point play the old-fashioned way allowed the Blue Hose to maintain a narrow advantage, at 34-33, with 15:30 remaining in the game.
A 9-2 spurt by ETSU saw the Bucs retake the lead, with a pair of Blake Barkley trips to the foul line, where he went 4-of-4, and another Barkley three-pointer highlighting run. However, the Blue Hose wouldn't go away, as Josh Pickett answered with two threes in less than a minute to put the hometown Blue Hose back in front.
Cam Morris III helped the Bucs re-take the lead in the see-saw affair, as he his triple with just under 10 minutes remaining would see the Bucs assume a 47-44 lead. Morris II then cushioned the lead when he posted a three-point play the old-fashioned way to make it a 50-46 game with 8:19 remaining. A Brian Taylor II jumper gave ETSU its largest lead of the half at six, at 55-49, on a jumper with 6:45 remaining. A three by Elon transfer Brayden Crump helped the Bucs keep the advantage at four, at 58-54, with just over four minutes left in the game.
However, Presbyterian took the lead with 1:38 remaining when Jonah Pierce hit the back end free throw of a two-shot foul to give the Blue Hose a 61-60 lead, and then an acrobatic jumper by Jaylen Peterson off a steal and then converted a three-point play after getting fouled, gave the Blue Hose a 65-60 lead with just under a minute left, and the Blue Hose were able to maintain that lead over the final 40 seconds to come away with a big win for the Big South over the SoCon, 68-64.
Cam Morris III led the Bucs with 17 points in 25 minutes before fouling out of the game, while Brian Taylor II finished the game with 13. The Blue Hose got a solid all-around, balanced scoring effort as well, with Carl Parrish's 17 points leading the way, while Jonah Pierce came up big with a double-double of 15 points and 13 rebounds.
The Bucs finished the night connecting on just 39% from the field in the road loss, including just a 24% clip from three-point range. The Blue Hose held a slight 33-31 edge on the backboards, but ETSU held a substantial 19-7 edge in points from turnovers, forcing a total of 16 Blue Hose miscues in the contest, while committing just 12 of its own.
Wofford 86, Milwaukee 76 (Nov. 8, 2025)
Wofford new men's basketball coach Kevin Giltner secured his first win as head coach in his first home game at the Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium, as the Terriers bounced back nicely from a season-opening road loss at George Mason with an 86-76 triumph over preseason Horizon League favorite Milwaukee.
The Terriers led from wire-to-wire, as Kahmare Holmes led the way for Wofford with a career-high 24 points before a crowd of 1,342 fans on-hand at Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium. True freshman forward and former Kenan High School standout Brian Sumpter added his first-career double-double, scoring 21 points and added 11 boards to Wofford's cause, while Nils Machowski and Luke Flynn rounded out the Terriers in double figures in the contest, adding 12 and 10 points, respectively, to the cause.
Wofford came out firing on all cylinders, as the Terriers scored on four of their first five possessions of the game, as triples by both Cayden Vasko and Nils Machowski helped push Wofford to an early 10-point advantage (15-5) with 15:26 remaining in the opening half of play. A Sumpter two-handed dunk officially took the early lead to 12, as the JRIS erupted with delight.
The Terriers shot the ball much better in this contest than they did in the opener on the road in Fairfax, VA., as Wofford on 44.4% (28-of-63) from the field in comparison to its 30% (15-of-50) performance in the season opener. Wofford also asserted its physicality on the backboards, as the Terriers were a +17 on the glass (46-29) for the game.
Milwaukee, a foe of fellow SoCon rival Chattanooga in recent seasons, started to gain some traction midway through the opening half of play, putting together an 11-5 spurt to get back into the game, cutting the Wofford lead inside double digits. However, a pair of Sumpter dunks pushed Wofford's lead back to 14, at 37-23, with just over six minutes remaining in the half, as once again the Wofford faithful rose in unison to cheer on their young, talented freshman forward.
Wofford's offensive aggressive was given credibility by the fact that the Terriers went to the line 13 times in the first half, while the Panthers had only eight foul shot attempts. Wofford knocked down 11-of-13 free throw attempts in the opening half, which included going 6-for-7 from the charity stripe in the final three minutes, taking a 47-33 lead into the halftime locker room.
In the second half, both teams were a little slow to get the scoring started, but when the lid came off the basket for the Terriers, order was restored in their offensive efficiency, beginning with a high-level, acrobatic layup from Luke Flynn.
The early going saw Wofford maintain its strong grip on the proceedings, knocking down four of its first six shots and going 1-for-2 from the line in the early going, heading to the first media timeout of the second half with a substantial 18-point (56-38) lead.
The Panthers came out of the first media of the second half refreshed, cutting Wofford's advantage by five, at 58-45, when Josh Dixon connected on a three-pointer with 14:04 remaining in the game.
But Wofford responded like it had in the first half when the Panthers threatened to make it a game, using a 9-3 run to push the lead to 19 with a little over 10 minutes remaining, as a layup by Machowski secured a 67-48 Terrier lead.
Holmes and Sumpter delivered back-to-back rim-rattling slams that got the house jumping again, helping Wofford to avoid one of those dreaded lulls when holding a double-digit lead, and that allowed Giltner's club to keep the energy and decibel levels relatively high inside the JRIS for a majority of the afternoon. The back-to-back dunks by Wofford were sandwiched by a Milwaukee three from Esyah Pippa-White, and after the Panthers briefly had the margin at 11, Sumpter's emphatic finish with 5:43 remaining helped quell any thoughts of road momentum being established by the visitors, as the Terriers assumed the 72-59 advantage.
After Wofford fattened its lead back to 15 (76-61) just inside four minutes on a pair of Machowski free throws, the Panthers scored on back-to-back possessions, while stopping Wofford in-between, getting the deficit back to 11 following Dixon's layup with 3:19 remaining, slicing the Wofford lead to 76-65.
The Panthers would cut Wofford's lead to 11 twice more inside the three minutes, but had to settled on a 10-point loss, as Wofford increased its lead to as much as 15 on another Sumpter rim-rocker with 1:19 left, making it pretty much academic at that point, increasing Wofford lead to 84-69.
A key element of Wofford being able to maintain a healthy lead and escape with the win over the Horizon League favorite came in the fact that their tenacity in attack mode around the basket never dwindled all afternoon, and after posting an 11-of-13 performance at the line in the opening 20 minutes, the Terriers connected on 14-of-17 charity shots in the second half, finishing the game at an outstanding 25-of-30 (83.3%) from the charity stripe, out-scoring the Panthers 25-15 at the line on 11 more attempts (30-19).
Milwaukee, which shot 42.9% (27-of-63) for the game, including 38.9% (7-of-18) from three-point range, was led by Seth Hubbard's 17 points, while Stevie Elam added 12 and Danilo Jovanovich added 10. Josh Dixon scored 11 of Milwaukee's 25 bench points, which was another area dominated by Wofford, thanks in large part to Sumpter's 21 points, as Wofford owned a 36-25 edge in bench scoring.
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