Dec. 15, 2007
Box Score
Greensboro, N.C. -
Kyle Hines collected his 35th career double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds to help UNC Greensboro erase a four-point halftime deficit and down Furman 75-63 in Southern Conference men's basketball action Saturday night at Fleming Gym.
Hines scored 14 of his team-high 16 points in the second half to lead five Spartans in double figures, while Kendall Toney came off the bench to bury three second half treys and tally 10 points in the come-from-behind victory.
The loss drops Furman to 0-8 overall and 0-3 in SoCon play. The Spartans improve to 4-4 overall and 1-1 inside the league.
With the game tied 51-51 and less than eight minutes remaining, the Spartans went on a 13-2 run to open up a 64-53 lead with 3:50 left. Hines scored four points during the stretch, Toney drained a trey and UNCG connected on 4-of-4 attempts from the foul line. The Spartans, who made 23-of-30 free throws for the game, converted 9-of-12 at the charity stripe in the final 3:30 to hold off the Paladins. Furman attempted just five free throws on the night.
The Spartans connected on 55% (11-20) of their second half shots to outscore the Paladins 41-25 over the final 20 minutes. Furman opened a 38-34 halftime advantage as Noah States tallied 14 of his career-high 16 points during the opening frame. The Paladins shot 45.5% from the floor in the period, but just 41.9% (26-62) for the game.
UNCG shot 47.1% (24-51) and outrebounded the Paladins 39-29. Furman made 8-of-25 three-pointers while the Spartans connected on 4-of-17 beyond the arc.
Alex Opacic added 13 points on 6-of-9 shooting and Connor Nolte chipped in with seven points and six rebounds.
Mikko Koivisto tallied 14 points, Ben Stywall 10 and Kevin Oleksiak 13 to join Hines and Toney in double figures. Hines rejected a school record seven shots to lead the Spartans.
Furman travels to Logan, Utah, for the Gossner Foods Holiday Classic on December 20-21, at Utah State. The Paladins face Northern Arizona in the tournament opener at 7:30 p.m. ET Thursday before battling either the host Aggies or Utah Valley State on Friday. Furman concludes its seven-game road swing at the Shamrock Office Solutions Classic at St. Mary's (Calif.) December 28-29.
