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Furman Drops SoCon Opener Against Appalachian State, 65-60
Dec. 3, 2008
Greenville, S.C. - Appalachian State overcame a five point deficit in the final three minutes and scored the final 10 points to upend Furman 65-60 in the Southern Conference men's basketball opener for both teams Wednesday evening at Carolina First Court at Timmons Arena.
Furman's loss, its fifth straight, dropped the Paladins to 1-5 on the season and 0-1 in the SoCon. The Mountaineers improved to 3-2 overall and 1-0 in the league.
With 2:33 remaining and Furman leading 60-55 Isaac Butts converted a layup on an offensive rebound to trim the Paladin lead to three points. After Butts claimed the rebound on a Darryl Evans miss on the other end of the floor, Kellen Brand sliced the advantage to one with two free throws at the 1:53 mark. Josh Hunter put the Mountaineers in the lead for good at 61-60 on the next possession as he buried a short jumper with 81 seconds left.
Furman failed to score on its next possession, but forced a shot clock violation to get the basketball back with 27.5 second to play. Jordan Miller penetrated the middle of the lane and kicked a pass out to Evans, but the junior's three-pointer from the corner was an air ball and Appalachian State cleared the rebound. Hunter drained a pair of free throws with eight seconds left to up the Mountaineer lead to 63-60 before Evans lost the inbounds pass out of bounds. Brand buried a pair of free throws for the final 65-60 margin.
"We're disappointed in the loss," said Furman head coach Jeff Jackson. "We played well and did some things better tonight, but we've got to learn to finish plays and finish games."
Hunter paced Appalachian State with 13 points and 11 rebounds while Butts also notched a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Ryann Abraham and Bermudez joined them in double figures with 13 and 10 points, respectively.
Appalachian State shot 42.6% (23-54) from the floor, including 6-of-21 beyond the arc while making 13-of-17 attempts at the foul line. The Mountaineers took a 37-30 edge on the boards and outscored Furman 36-26 in the second half after trailing 34-29 at intermission.
Miller netted a game-high 17 points for the Paladins on 6-of-13 shooting from the field and 4-of-6 shooting at the charity stripe. Alex Opacic contributed 14 points and seven boards while Bryson Barnes chipped in with a career-high 12 points.
Furman shot 38.9% from the field, but made just 3-of-16 three-point field goal attempts. The Paladins converted on 15-of-20 trips to the foul line and committed just 15 turnovers.
Appalachian State continues SoCon play on Saturday when it travels to Spartanburg, S.C., to face the Wofford Terriers. Furman steps back into non-conference play on Friday when it travels to Columbia, S.C., to battle Southeastern Conference opponent South Carolina in a 6 p.m. contest at the Colonial Life Arena.
