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Furman Rolls Past The Ciadel 83-59
Jan. 15, 2005
GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Eric Webb scored a game high 20 points to lead Furman past The Citadel 83-59 in Southern Conference basketball action in front of 2,230 fans Saturday afternoon at Timmons Arena.
Webb, a sophomore guard from Grand Rapids, Minn., converted four 3-pointers and 8-of-10 free throws for his 20 points to help Furman (10-6, 3-1 SoCon South) to its third straight win, fourth consecutive triumph over The Citadel (10-4, 2-2 SoCon South), and ninth straight home victory. The Bulldogs got a game high 16 points from Kevin Hammack.
Furman shot only 41.5 percent from the field (22-of-53) but converted a season high 29 free throws on another season high 41 attempts. Robby Bostain added 14 points, eight rebounds, seven assists, and two steals, while Ben Earle tacked on 13 points and Nicholas Sanders 11 points and eight rebounds for the Paladins, who claimed a 39-35 rebounding advantage in the contest. Furman also drained 10-of-25 3-pointers (40.0 percent).
"I thought we came out and executed our game plan very well," said Furman head coach Larry Davis. We applied constant pressure on them defensively and did a good job of keeping the ball out of the hands of Warren McLendon's hands. We also did a nice job of making the extra pass and finding the open man and getting to the free throw line.
Furman, which entered the game ranked second in the SoCon in free throw percentage (72.5 percent) but next to last in the SoCon in free throws made (169) and attempts (233), took advantage of strong ball movement and 31 fouls by The Citadel to reach the charity stripe
The Paladins trailed 4-2 almost three minutes into the game but used an 8-0 run to grab a 12-4 lead following a Gerad Punch layup at the 13:13 mark.
A Ben Earle 3-pointer at the 9:51 juncture put the Paladins ahead 21-8, and the Paladins later forged a 10-0 spurt, highlighted by a Webb 3-pointer with 4:00 left, to take a 34-16 lead.
Trailing 41-25 at intermission, The Citadel pulled to within 14 points at 41-27 following a layup by J'mel Everhart. But Furman quickly gained total control with another 10-0 run finished off by another Webb 3-pointer at the 16:05 juncture, to stretch its advantage to 24 points at 51.27.
Furman's lead grew to as many as 35 points at 80-45 following a 3-pointer by George Brozos with 6:47 remaining.
Furman returns to action on Monday when it takes on College of Charleston in Charleston in a 7:00 p.m. game. The Citadel, meanwhile, travels to Spartanburg on Monday for a clash with Wofford, also at 7:00 p.m.
