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Paladins Hold On To Defeat Elon, Claim Third Straight Win, 69-64
Feb. 10, 2007
Elon, N.C. - Robby Bostain knocked down a game-high 19 points, 11 in the final 2:50, as Furman staved off Elon 69-64 in Southern Conference men¹s basketball action Saturday afternoon at Alumni Gym.
Bostain canned five of his eight field goal attempts and sank eight of his 10 shots from the free throw line as the Paladins (13-11 overall, 7-6 SoCon) improved to 2-2 all-time versus the Phoenix (5-18, 3-10), winning at Alumni Gym for the first time in three visits. The win, Furman's third consecutive victory, marked the Paladins' sixth triumph in their last eight outings.
In the early going, the contest was tied at 2-2, 4-4 and 6-6 before Furman reeled off 10 unanswered points to trade a 6-4 deficit in for a 14-6 advantage on a jumper by Jadee Jones with 10:49 remaining in the opening stanza.
Trailing 20-12 after a three-pointer by the Paladins¹ Alex Opacic with 7:01 to play, Elon used a pair of charity shots by LeVonn Jordan and a trey by Chris Chalko to pull within 20-17 with 5:51 left before the break.
Late in the first period, the Phoenix remained within striking distance. After Jordan¹s dunk at the 3:10 mark, Elon trailed just 26-23. The Paladins, who led 30-25 at halftime, went on a 17-6 run to claim its largest lead of the day at 43-29 on a three-point field goal by George Brozos with 13:27 left in the contest.
Trailing 60-49 after Bostain cashed in on his lone attempt from three-point land with 2:53 to play, the Phoenix made one final run. Elon used a 15-7 spurt to draw within 67-64 on a lay-up by John Charlesworth with four seconds to go, but could inch no closer. Bostain netted a pair of freebies with two ticks left to decide the final margin.
Bostain received plenty of help from teammates Moussa Diagne and Tony Anderson, who added 10 points apiece. Suffering its fifth consecutive setback, Elon was paced by Chalko (17 points) and Jordan (15 points, game-high 10 rebounds).
Furman fired 52.2 percent (24 of 46) from the field 50.0 percent (8 of 16) from three-point land while the Phoenix shot 44.0 percent (22 of 50) from the floor 42.9 percent (6 of 14) from behind the arc.
Elon won the rebounding (32-27) and turnover (14-15) wars, but was outscored 30-22 in the paint. The Phoenix outscored the Paladins 11-7 off turnovers, 11-5 off second chances and 31-28 off the bench.
This coming Monday, Furman hosts Georgia Southern at 7 p.m. while Elon visits UNC Greensboro at 7:30 p.m.
